Hard luck filly runs with heart

STICKNEY, Ill. - When Soul Onarazorsedge won the Pollyanna Pixie Stakes, a $40,000 overnight race at Hawthorne Friday, she overcame six opponents and a serious physical impediment. An accident shortly after she was born badly injured Soul Onarazorsedge's face, and left her without a right eye.

"She's got about no face on the right side," trainer Gene Brajczewski said Saturday morning. "She lost her eye and the whole side of her face has atrophied."

Soul Onarazorsedge recovered from that catastrophic injury, only to suffer another severe wound, this time to her chest, when she ran headlong into a fence a year later.

The trauma to her psyche - to say nothing of the physical damage - would have kept many horses from a racing career.

But Soul Onarazorsedge has managed to develop into a solid 3-year-old sprinter and will be pointed to stakes at Arlington this summer, Brajczewski said.

"You have to go real slow around her," Brajczewski said. "But she's just the sweetest filly. When she runs, she puts her heart into it."

Soul Onarazorsedge also has started putting her mind into it, thanks to Brajczewski and his staff, and jockey Zoe Cadman. Friday's race was the first time in seven starts that she rated off the early pace.

Before, she had gone straight to the lead and ran as fast as she could for as long as she could. But Brajczewski has been teaching her to relax, and the lessons obviously took hold Friday, as she rated well behind the speed horses and finished strongly.

"Zoe's been a big help," Brajczewski said of Cadman, who rode Soul Onarazorsedge for the first time Friday. "She worked her two times.

"The filly always tried to look to the right because she can't see there, but yesterday she didn't try to look sideways."

Next up for Soul Onarazorsedge is the June 24 Ribbon Stakes.

Idarado off the layoff

If he's ready after a long layoff, Idarado may be the best horse in Tuesday's featured race, a second-level sprint allowance to be contested at six furlongs.

At age 5, Idarado has started only four times, but has won twice and never has run out of the money. Owned by Team Block and trained by Chris Block, Idarado hasn't started since July 13. But Block is good at getting horses ready off a layoff, and there's a good chance Idarado will run well.