Frolicing shows Azalea potential
MIAMI - Frolicing likely earned herself a spot in the Grade 3 Azalea Breeders' Cup Stakes on July 15 with an impressive three-length victory over favored A Sea Trippi in Friday's Swept Away Stakes, a six-furlong overnight stakes for 3-year-old fillies.
Frolicing ($5.10) overcame a slow start and her continued penchant for bearing out into or through the stretch to register her second straight victory and first stakes success. A daughter of Royal Academy, Frolicing earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 93 for her effort.
"That was the reason we put her in this race, to see if she could handle this type of competition and see if she belongs in the Azalea," said former major league pitcher Rob Murphy Jr., whose father, Robert Murphy, owns and bred the filly. "And from the way she handled herself, it looks like she does. I couldn't have been happier with the way she ran, and I'm especially happy for my dad."
Trainer Marty Wolfson said he has been unable to find any physical reason why Frolicing has drifted in each of her last three starts.
"We just let her do it now if she's clear," said Wolfson, noting that the filly's jockey, Abel Castellano Jr., "knows her now and can deal with it."
Pomeroy gets in work, not race
Any question as to whether Wolfson intended to run Pomeroy in Saturday's $45,000 Champali Stakes ended shortly before 9 a.m. that morning when the Grade 1 winner appeared on the track and worked five furlongs in 1:02.40 from the gate.
Pomeroy, idle since undergoing minor surgery to remove a chip in his ankle shortly after finishing off the board in the Grade 1 Vosburgh Handicap on Oct. 1, covered the final two furlongs of the work in 12.33 and 12.23 seconds, the majority of that distance around the clubhouse turn.
Pomeroy is being pointed for the Grade 2 Smile Sprint Handicap on July 15. Wolfson is also considering graded stakes winners Chandtrue and Mister Fotis for the Smile.
Dynamite Diva may be favored
Dynamite Diva, a nose winner of her career debut on May 9, may be the slight favorite Monday in the first allowance race for 2-year-old fillies carded at the meet. The five-furlong dash serves as a prep for the $80,000 Cassidy Stakes on July 15.
Dynamite Diva, a daughter of Successful Appeal trained by Tim Ritvo, will face a lineup that includes the undefeated pair of She's Bloomin and Rose of Southlake. Wise Beauty, First Lady on Tour, and A Slick Chic round out the field.