Frankel flexes his muscles

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - The depth of Bobby Frankel's stable is on display in Friday's sixth race at Hollywood Park.

Frankel has two leading contenders in a field of 10 in a $50,000 allowance over 1 1/16 miles on turf - Fully Invested and Northern Blue. Both are 4-year-old fillies with stakes experience in Europe who are making their first start in this country.

Fully Invested had one win in five starts in England, including a third in a listed stakes over about 1 1/4 miles in May 2001. She is unraced since October, when she was sixth in a stakes at Newmarket.

Northern Blue was second in the Prix de la Seine in France in June 2001 and was unplaced in two other stakes last summer. Overall, she has one victory in seven starts.

Considering Frankel has such talented fillies in a first-condition allowance race, it is no surprise he led the trainers standings with 20 winners through Sunday, six more than his closest pursuers.

The Frankel fillies face No Way Out, a Brazilian import who has not started in 19 months; View From the Top, a maiden winner on June 21; and I'm the Business, who has run third in five consecutive allowance races.

No Way Out has been plagued by injuries since arriving in this country, according to trainer Paulo Lobo.

"In her first work in May of last year, she had a problem with her tendon and spent 10 months at the farm," Lobo said.

Lobo says that No Way Out may need a start before she is capable of winning.

"It's been a long time since she ran," he said. "I think this race will make her more fit."

View From the Top won her first start on turf by 2 1/2 lengths on June 21. Trained by David Hofmans, View From the Top ran a professional race, stalking the pace to early stretch before pulling clear.

Several fillies in the field have run well in allowance races but would need to show further improvement to beat the Frankel pair or View From the Top.

I'm the Business has been close in her last five starts, but has drawn the outside post. She will be ridden by Laffit Pincay Jr., a replacement for Garrett Gomez, who rides Northern Blue.

Jalisco was second as a heavy favorite in an allowance race over1 1/2 miles on June 20. Stakes-placed in England in 2000, Jalisco has yet to win in five starts for trainer Neil Drysdale.

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