Dynamic Impact seeks to move forward off tightener
RACE REPLAY IS NOT AVAILABLE
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – If the sheer number of allowance races on a given racing program is the criterion by which its quality is judged, well, the Friday card at Churchill Downs is a good one.
Four of the nine races are allowances, as they’ll bookend the afternoon as races 1, 7, 8, and 9.
The richest is the opener, a $60,700, third-level, filly-and-mare route scheduled for the turf at 12:45 p.m. Eastern. But because that race will have a maximum of just six betting interests, the other allowances were granted fan-friendlier positioning later on the program, including a $58,500, second-level race carded as the seventh.
Dynamic Impact, the winner of the 2014 Illinois Derby for trainer Mark Casse, figures as a top contender among a field of nine older horses in that 1 1/16-mile race, assuming the 4-year-old colt improves off a recent outing that marked his first start in a little more than a year.
The two allowances that conclude the afternoon both are $56,300, first-level races. Race 8 is for 3-year-olds at seven furlongs on the main track, and race 9 is for fillies and mares at five furlongs on the turf.
OPTIONAL CLAIMER (RACE 7)
KEY CONTENDERS
Dynamic Impact (Last 3 Beyers: 77-80-102)
◗ Casse more or less implied beforehand that this son of Tiznow would need the May 22 sprint in which he wound up a decent fifth when showing off-the-bench speed; a stretch-out to this two-turn distance should be more to his liking, especially with the tightener under his belt.
C J’s Awesome (Last 3 Beyers: 89-81-93)
◗ He finished second at 5-2 odds in this same sort of race May 24 for the Ken McPeek stable, which sent out three winners in less than 24 hours here last weekend; colt figures to show similar tactics on or near the lead throughout.
Aces High (Last 3 Beyers: 80-85-91)
◗ This consistent colt finished an okay fourth in the same May 24 race behind C J’s Awesome when stepping up in class off a nice first-level triumph at Oaklawn Park for Steve Margolis.
◗ His career-best Beyer Speed Figure (99) from a December maiden win makes him one to respect.
Geothermal (Last 3 Beyers: 80-92-96)
◗ This uncoupled half of a Margolis duo is one of three (with Full Dancer and Mordi’s Miracle) in the lineup entered for an optional $62,500 claiming tag; he also boasts a gaudy Beyer (96) among his recent past-performance lines.