Future could be now for Depiction in wide-open Poker Stakes; $55,492 pick six carryover
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Cherie DeVaux believes the best is yet to come for her 4-year-old turf miler Depiction. If his best begins to show itself Thursday in the Grade 3, $300,000 Poker Stakes at Saratoga, bettors might be able to cash in at a nice price in a seemingly wide-open race.
Thursday's card will open with a $55,492 carryover in the $1 pick six after the wager went unhit Wednesday. The sequence begins in Race 5.
Depiction has left himself too much to do in some of his most recent starts, including a narrow defeat to his DeVaux-trained stablemate Brilliant Berti in last fall’s Grade 3 Bryan Station Stakes at Keeneland, where he was beaten a neck. In his 4-year-old debut last month in an allowance at Keeneland, Depiction was again far back and got held up along the inside in upper stretch, but he came with a solid run when switched to the outside and finished fourth, beaten a nose and a neck for second.
“He’s a horse that’s taken a very long time to come together physically and he finally looks fantastic,” DeVaux said. “He’s working really, really well. The horse is really talented, has a really nice turn of foot. He’s a horse that has a future ahead of him.”
Horses out of the Bryan Station have come back to win nine races, five being stakes. Brilliant Berti won the Opening Verse and finished second in Saturday’s Grade 3 Arlington Stakes at Churchill.
DeVaux has had a difficult time keeping the same rider on Depiction. John Velazquez rides him for the first time on Thursday.
The Poker became a wide-open affair when Carl Spackler, winner of the Grade 1 Maker’s Mark Mile, was sold to Australian interests and is now in England pointing to the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot. Chad Brown was the trainer of Carl Spackler. He will now run Intellect, who, with a wide trip, finished a head in front of Depiction in that April 24 allowance at Keeneland. That was Intellect’s first start in a year.
“He had a challenging trip at Keeneland. He ran super,” Brown said. “He got a good number and he came out of it good.”
The 9-year-old Brazilian-bred Filo Di Arianna will probably look to wire this field under Jose Ortiz. He won the Grade 2 King Edward at Woodbine on the front end before finishing second in the Woodbine Mile last September. Trainer Mark Casse ran him in a 5 1/2-furlong stakes over Woodbine’s synthetic surface on May 4, where he finished second, as a prep for this race. Filo Di Arianna finished second to Emmanuel, beaten a neck, in the 2023 Poker held at Belmont Park.
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Filo Di Arianna’s potential pace challenger is Donegal Momentum, who will likely be forward from his outside draw under Javier Castellano. Donegal Momentum was upset at 4-5 in an allowance last out by Sherlock’s Jewel, who sat a dream trip just off the speed for his second straight allowance win for trainer Shug McGaughey. Sherlock’s Jewel is entered in the Poker.
Cameo Performance, trained by Brendan Walsh, shortens up in distance following a three-length defeat while finishing eighth in the Grade 1 Turf Classic at 1 1/8 miles last month at Churchill Downs. Mercante, second in the Turf Classic, won the Grade 3 Arlington at Churchill last Saturday.
“I think he’s a horse that, maybe more than anything, likes a bit of pace in front of him,” Walsh said of Cameo Performance. “In his best races, he’s had plenty of pace to run at. It looks a good spot for him on form.”
Major Dude, like Depiction and Cameo Performance, needs some pace to be effective. In his last start, where he finished third in the Opening Verse at Churchill Downs, “he had no real pace to run at,” trainer Todd Pletcher said.
Mischievous Angel comes off a half-length loss to Signator in the Henry Clark Stakes at Laurel on April 19 at Laurel for trainer Jorge Abreu.
The Poker goes as race 9 on a 10-race card that begins at 12:40 p.m. and includes three other stakes, including the Grade 2 Intercontinental.
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