Have to catch Princess Briartic

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan - A field of five fillies and mares compete in Saturday's $5,000 Mademoiselle Handicap, with Princess Briartic the logical choice in the one-mile event.

A stakes winner at Marquis Downs earlier in her career, Princess Briartic will be seeking her third straight victory and should be loose on the lead in the Mademoiselle.

Princess Briartic, with 16 wins in her career, ran out of the money twice to start the year when facing high-priced claiming mares. But a drop to face $2,500 claimers did the trick, and Princess Briartic scored a seven-length victory over six furlongs.

Trainer Fern Zdunick then sent her back just seven days later to face allowance mares, and she posted a wire-to-wire victory, defeating Picture the Answer by 1 1/2 lengths.

Picture the Answer, also a stakes winner here, should be stalking Princess Briartic, just as she did in that seven-furlong allowance race July 10. In her only other start of the meet, Picture the Answer ran second at the $6,000 claiming level.

Picture the Answer picks up the meet's leading rider, Serge Rocheleau, and should enjoy the one-mile distance.

Risky Stretch is the only returnee from the first stakes race of the meet in this division, the Adesa Auto Glass Handicap. Risky Stretch finished fourth to Red Parka Mary, Brite Steel, and She's Nifty, and none of them is entered here.

That race was Risky Stretch's first of the year, and her only subsequent outing saw her finish 7 1/2 lengths behind Princess Briartic and Picture the Answer.

Completing the field are Infinite Series, a winner versus claimers in her last two, and Queen of Cash.