Film Star looks best of what’s left in scratched-down, off-turf Lure
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – With about three hours to go until the $135,000 Lure Stakes at Saratoga Race Course, defending winner Smokin' T became the latest scratch from the off-the-turf race, with a field of four, including the prescient main-track-only entrant Film Star, now set to go in the stakes.
The Lure, for older horses who have not won a graded stakes race in 2024, was taken off the turf late Saturday morning, following overnight rain that pushed most of Saturday's scheduled turf races to the wet main track, and caused the Grade 1 Saratoga Derby and Grade 2 Troy Stakes to be moved to next weekend.
As of 2 p.m. on Saturday, the field of nine in the main body of the field had seen six scratches - More Than Looks, who had been one of the morning-line choices, along with Smokin' T, Kubrick, Forever Souper, Irish Aces, and Big Everest. Original entrants Swiftsure, Johny's Fireball, and Pioneering Spirit, all of whom have main-track form, were set to go postward, along with main-track entrant Film Star, who now draws in.
Irad Ortiz, Jr., who was originally scheduled to ride More Than Looks, will now be aboard Film Star for Linda Rice. The 5-year-old has made 14 of his 19 career starts on dirt, with a record of 3-4-2 on the main track. That includes a runner-up effort in a sloppy Saratoga allowance last summer, and a Grade 2 placing at Aqueduct. The gelding is making his second start of 2024, and is eligible to improve following a third-place effort in a Saratoga allowance/optional-claiming race on July 11 with a solid 92 Beyer Speed Figure.
Swiftsure boasts a record of 16-5-2-2 in main-track races; Johny's Fireball (7-2-1-1), and Pioneering Spirit (7-0-3-1) also have some experience on the surface. Swiftsure and Johny's Fireball look like the speed of the race, with the forwardly-placed Film Star now getting an ideal outside position to track the other pace. With such a short field, the pace is not likely to be blazing, but no one is likely to get away from the field too much.
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