Difficulty level rises for No Parole in H. Allen Jerkens Stakes

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – No Parole defeated four rivals rather convincingly when he became a Grade 1 winner for the first time with his 3 3/4-length triumph in the Woody Stephens earlier this summer at Belmont Park. But winning a second straight Grade 1 may prove a little tougher task for the speedy No Parole, who will take on 10 others in the $300,000 H. Allen Jerkens Stakes, including the second-, third- and fourth-place finishers from the Woody Stephens.

Formerly known as the King’s Bishop, the Allen Jerkens is one of three Grade 1 events on Saturday’s 12-race program at Saratoga. The Allen Jerkens, like the Woody Stephens, is for 3-year-olds at seven furlongs.

:: Get DRF's Betting Strategies for Saratoga's weekend cards

No Parole enters the Allen Jerkens undefeated and virtually untested at distances of a mile or less. The only blemish on his record was a last-place finish over a sloppy track going 1 1/16 miles in Oaklawn Park’s Grade 2 Rebel on March 14.

No Parole was able to establish an easy lead under jockey Luis Saez in the Woody Stephens, and as a result had plenty left in the tank when engaged by both Mischevious Alex and Shoplifted on the final turn. He drew away, despite not switching off his left lead down the stretch.

“He broke very sharp, made the lead, and Saez did a great job of slowing things down,” said Tom Amoss, who trains No Parole for owners Maggi Moss and Greg Tramontin. “And when the field came to him turning for home, he was very responsive to Luis’s commands when called upon, and distanced himself from the group. I was really excited about that.”

Amoss said he had a feeling the field would be larger for the Allen Jerkens, although he was somewhat surprised the race drew 11 starters.

“With a horse like him, the first thing you do is kind of scan the field to see the style of the other horses in the race, and obviously there are some in here who could go with him early if they chose to, although it’s not really their style,” Amoss said. “He is very athletic out of the gate, as he showed the last time, and we’ll try to take advantage of that and again establish position at the front.”

No Parole, who’ll carry high weight of 124 pounds under the allowance conditions of the Allen Jerkens, has worked twice since shipping to Saratoga, including a bullet half-mile in 46.40 seconds last Friday.

“He handled the track very well in his last work,” Amoss said. “It was not only good from the standpoint of the time, but visually, too. We certainly were asking him the last part, and he responded well.”

Taking a crack at likely favorite No Parole for a second time are Echo Town, Shoplifted, and Mischevious Alex, the second, third, and fourth finishers in the Woody Stephens. Echo Town and Shoplifted are two of the three horses trainer Steve Asmussen entered in the race, along with Sonneman.

Echo Town sat a perfect trip in the Woody Stephens, saving ground behind the early leaders before rallying to finish second making his graded stakes debut. Shoplifted was hung widest making his bid on the final turn before flattening out down the stretch. Mischevious Alex, winner of the Grade 3 Swale at Gulfstream and Grade 3 Gotham at Aqueduct earlier in the year, also raced a bit wide and could not sustain his rally through the stretch.

:: DRF's Saratoga headquarters – Stakes schedule, previews, recaps, past performances, and more

Among the new shooters Saturday are California invader and Grade 1 winner Eight Rings, along with Tap It to Win, who turns back in distance after finishing a tiring fifth in the 1 1/8-mile Belmont Stakes.

Eight Rings won the Grade 1 American Pharoah by six lengths last September at Santa Anita, but has been off the board in his two subsequent starts. He finished a tiring fifth as the odds-on favorite in his lone 3-year-old outing three months earlier at Oaklawn Park.

“He’s doing good,” trainer Bob Baffert said. “I probably shouldn’t have brought him back in that last one. That might have been a trainer error there. But he’s doing good, and we’re taking a shot.”

Tap It to Win set the pace for the opening mile of the Belmont before running out of gas down the stretch. He was returning in just 16 days off a wire-to-wire five-length allowance win for which he earned a 97 Beyer Speed Figure.

John Velazquez rides Tap It to Win, who breaks from the outside post Saturday.

“I love the draw, I love the fact he’s outside, and cutting back in distance he probably won’t be as fast, which should help Johnny work a trip out,” said Tap It to Win’s trainer, Mark Casse. “I still think he’s kind of an unknown. We’re still trying to figure out what his best niche is, but if he comes with his ‘A’ game he should run very well there.”