Financial Recovery faces own kind Friday

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – There is no allowance event on Friday’s nine-race card at Woodbine, but there are several appealing turf races, including a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight route for 2-year-old fillies. Financial Recovery, who makes her third start but her first against maidens, should be favored.

Both of Financial Recovery’s races came on the turf here in August. She was bet down to favoritism at first asking in the restricted Shady Well Stakes and rallied from sixth to finish fourth after lacking room in deep stretch.

Financial Recovery has been idle since Aug. 27, when she ran fourth with blinkers on in the allowance prep for the Natalma Stakes. The second- and third-place finishers in that seven-furlong sprint, Victory to Victory and Stormy Perfection, subsequently ran one-two in the Grade 1 Natalma.

Financial Recovery has changed trainers leading up to this race, going from Brian Lynch to Catherine Day Phillips. She worked twice on the turf training course in September, and this is her first start with Lasix and with Rafael Hernandez, who recently vaulted up to sixth in the rider standings.

KEY CONTENDERS

Financial Recovery, by Street Cry

Beyers: 74-56

◗ She’s bred to be a good one and will make a nice broodmare someday. Her dam’s best offspring is the multiple stakes winner Blue Heart, who won the Bison City and Mazarine stakes. She also dropped three stakes-placed runners, including Financial Redemption.

Maritimeconnection, by Lookin At Lucky

Beyer: 56

◗ She came from off slow fractions to finish third when debuting in a six-furlong maiden special on the Tapeta three weeks ago.

◗ Her sire has yielded 12 percent winners on grass, and Maritimeconnection is a half-sister to the graded turf stakes winner Passion for Action. Both are trained by Mike De Paulo.

Soarwiththebirds, by Giant’s Causeway

Beyer: 41

◗ She came up empty over yielding ground in her Aug. 26 opener.

◗ Trainer Malcolm Pierce is taking the blinkers off for the stretch-out from seven furlongs.

◗ The Sam-Son Farm homebred is a half-sister to 2013 Canadian Horse of the Year Up With the Birds and to stakes winner Speightsong.

Stormbeam, by Eye of the Leopard

Beyers: 58-32

◗ After finishing far up the course in her debut, she closed inside for fourth after a troubled break when going on Lasix in another turf sprint two weeks ago.

A La Mode, by Arch

◗ The first-time starter has worked well for trainer Josie Carroll.

◗ With the portable rail in lane 4, she will have her work cut out for her after breaking from the outside post.