Drafted remains on target for Carter Handicap
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Though he sees the field becoming tougher and tougher every time he reads about it, trainer David Duggan said he is still planning to run Grade 3 Toboggan Stakes winner Drafted in the Grade 1, $300,000 Carter Handicap here on April 9.
“Every time I look, there’s a nice horse showing up,” Duggan said. “We’re going to roll the dice and see how it goes. If it works, great. If it doesn’t, we’ll dust ourselves off and go back to the real world.”
Drafted earned a solid 97 Beyer Speed Figure for his victory in the Toboggan, a race he won by 4 1/2 lengths, ending a 12-race losing streak that encompassed nearly three years.
Mentioned as possible for the Carter are Speaker’s Corner, recent winner of the Gulfstream Park Mile; First Captain, last year’s Grade 3 winner who won a recent allowance at Gulfstream; Officiating, the Grade 3 Tom Fool winner; Green Light Go, winner of the Stymie; and Wudda U Think Now, winner of the Hollie Hughes for New York-breds.