Delaware Park: New Yawker seeks fifth straight win

What do you do for an encore after winning your fourth straight race for your new connections and setting a track record? In the case of the 7-year-old gelding New Yawker, he’s switching surfaces and running with a claiming tag on his head.

New Yawker, whose current winning streak does include a pair of turf sprints, will follow up on his record-setting performance on dirt by sprinting five furlongs on grass in Monday’s $37,000 feature at Delaware Park.

All 10 older horses in the field, including main-track-only entrant Bellissima Luna, are entered for the optional $40,000 tag. The race also is open to second-level allowance runners.

New Yawker, claimed for $5,000 in February, has put together a four-race winning streak for trainer Julio Cartagena and owner Kryskaly Horse Racing Inc. Most recently, New Yawker won a $5,000 starter allowance in 1:02.59, breaking the old Delaware mark of 1:02.68 for 5 1/2 furlongs set in May 2006. That performance was worth a career-best 98 Beyer Speed Figure.

New Yawker ran considerably slower in his previous victory, a first-level allowance at five furlongs on turf at Pimlico that netted him a 79 Beyer.

Considering the high-caliber field Monday, New Yawker may need to run faster than that to extend his winning streak. The field includes Blue Mountain Cat, riding a four-race winning streak on dirt that includes a division of the Penn Dash on June 1; Sneaking Uponyou, whose 13 turf races include a one-length defeat to $1.9 million earner Chamberlain Bridge in the 2010 Pennsylvania Governor’s Cup; and Wicked Tune, who makes his first start since March following back-to-back turf-sprint wins at Gulfstream Park.

Trainer Tim Kreiser may be hoping Monday’s race gets taken off the turf because Blue Mountain Cat is 0 for 3 on grass. He finished a well-beaten seventh in his only sprint try on the surface in May 2012.

The 7-year-old Sneaking Uponyou is winless in 11 starts since taking a dirt sprint in April 2011, but his most recent turf effort was a good one. Racing at the same level as Monday’s race on June 27, Sneaking Uponyou finished second at Colonial Downs, earning a 91 Beyer.

Wicked Tune has been part of the exacta in 8 of 11 short sprints on turf. He put up back-to-back Beyers of 90 and 91 this past winter. Elvis Trujillo comes in from Monmouth Park for the mount.