Dual allowance features for frigid Friday card
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Back-to-back allowances with purses approaching six figures will serve as highlights of a 10-race Friday card at Churchill – assuming racing will be conducted amid unseasonable cold.
Overnight temperatures in the low 20s were expected to greet horsemen Friday morning, with a daytime high reaching only about 40. The last time Churchill canceled because of a frozen track was at the 2014 fall meet, when two straight days were missed.
If conditions are suitable for racing by the scheduled first post of 1 p.m. Eastern, the co-features should be entertaining.
Race 8 is a $97,000 first-level allowance for 2-year-old fillies going 6 1/2 furlongs, and there’s no clear-cut favorite in a field of 11. The highest Beyers were registered on non-dirt surfaces, led by Bean getting an 86 and 77 on synthetics and Western Taffy (72) and Takeitback (71) on turf. Otherwise, Into Humor, Turtle Trax, and Indy Takes Charge all look competitive with established main-track form.
Race 9 is a $99,000 second-level allowance for 3-year-olds and upward going a mile on the turf, and it looks like a scramble, too. Herecomesyourman, Secretary at War, Patriot Drive, and Combatant all seem capable among an oversubscribed lineup from which only as many as 10 can start.
A mild warming trend is in the weekend forecast, with a high of 50 for Saturday and 57 for Sunday.
Jefferson Cup rematch on tap
The top three finishers in the Sept. 28 Jefferson Cup at Churchill – Spectacular Gem, Tracksmith, and Faraway Kitten – will be rematched Saturday among a big lineup of 3-year-olds in the weekend highlight, the Grade 3, $175,000 Commonwealth Turf.
As many as 14 will be allowed to start in the Commonwealth Turf, which goes at 1 1/16 miles. Other notables include Armistice Day, a last-out runner-up in the Ontario Derby, and Louder Than Bombs, a last-out allowance winner over the Keeneland
◗ The Saturday card will feature the return of jockey Florent Geroux, who was cleared to ride by his physician after recovering from a broken sternum suffered in an Oct. 13 training spill at Keeneland. This week began with Geroux 12th in mount earnings among all North American riders with more than $10.1 million.
