Firenze Fire should get back to form on dry footing in True North

ELMONT, N.Y. – An inside post, a sloppy track, and a 112-day layoff may have all worked against Firenze Fire when he finished fourth in the Grade 1 Carter Handicap three weeks ago at Belmont Park.

Saturday, Firenze Fire has the outside post and is expected to catch a fast track when he runs back in the Grade 2, $150,000 True North Stakes going 6 1/2 furlongs at Belmont.

Firenze Fire won three straight stakes – the Fabulous Strike, the Gravesend, and Grade 3 General George – from Nov. 27 to Feb. 15. Firenze Fire was trained by Jason Servis, who in early March had his license suspended after being charged with allegedly administering illegal drugs to horses in his care.

Firenze Fire was transferred to Kelly Breen by owner Ron Lombardi. Breen felt he had Firenze Fire ready to run well in the Carter before the skies opened up and turned a fast track into a sloppy one.

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“I hate to make excuses, but he’s got little tiny feet and he had the one post,” Breen said. “He bounced out of the race pretty good. This is a pretty good spot. I wish there was a little more time in between, but he looks good, he kept his weight, he’s training well.”

Firenze Fire has run extremely well at Belmont. At 2, he won the Grade 1 Champagne, at 3 he won the Grade 3 Dwyer, and at 4 he won the listed Runhappy Stakes and was beaten a nose by Imperial Hint in the Grade 1 Vosburgh.

Firenze Fire breaks from post 8 under Irad Ortiz Jr.

The True North marks the seasonal debut of Promises Fulfilled, who last year won the Grade 2 John Nerud Stakes here. He has not run since finishing sixth in the Grade 2 Phoenix at Keeneland last October.

Trainer Dale Romans believes Promises Fulfilled is “as good or better than he’s ever been.”

Luis Saez rides from post 7.

Yorkton and Diamond King are interesting contenders in the True North.

Yorkton finished second behind Vekoma in the Sir Shackleton Stakes on March 28. While Vekoma came back to win the Grade 1 Carter, Yorkton finished second to Global Campaign in a strong allowance at Gulfstream on April 25.

“I thought that was a graded-caliber allowance race. It was a very competitive group and he ran really well,” said Graham Motion, who took over the training of Yorkton from Stuart Simon. “The idea was to keep him in North American and get some graded black type for him, so this has been our target.”

Yorkton is one of several speed types in this field.

“I’m going to leave it Dylan [Davis]. He rode him very well in Florida, but I think he could sit off a horse,” Motion said.

Diamond King shortens up in distance following a seventh-place finish in the Blame Stakes going a mile. Though Diamond King won the Stymie Stakes in front-running fashion in March at Aqueduct, trainer John Servis said, “I think he’s a better stalking than he is on the lead.”

Midnightcharly, Wicked Trick, Wait for It, and Stan the Man complete the field.