Headland will attempt two turns in Thursday allowance
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Headland is a talented sprinter who will attempt to conquer two turns in Thursday’s eighth race at Oaklawn Park.
“If she can, that opens up all kinds of things for us,” said Steve Hobby, who trains the mare for HWL Partnership.
The feature is a conditioned allowance for fillies and mares that carries a claiming price option of $100,000. The mile race will end at the sixteenth pole, as with all races at the distance at Oaklawn.
Headland faces five others, including W W Fitzy, who is coming off a powerful allowance win at Oaklawn; Jilted Bride, who has won back-to-back allowances at the meet; and Kim K, a stakes winner in California who is making her first start in Arkansas.
Headland enters off a runner-up finish in a local allowance over six furlongs that went in a quick 1:09.41. She was beaten 1 1/4 lengths by French Empire, who was winning her fourth straight race and has since been sold, according to her former trainer, Cipriano Contreras.
As for Headland, the next sprint option for her is not for a while at Churchill, so Hobby said the decision was made to attempt two turns in the “short stretch” configuration at Oaklawn.
“She’s ready to run, so we’ll give it a little try,” he said. “I think she’ll be fine. She’s learned to relax. Since we took the blinkers off three races ago, she’s relaxing so much more.”
Headland has made one career start around two turns, finishing fourth in a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight at Keeneland in October 2018. She’s gone on to win seven sprint races, but gets pedigree support for the added distance as a daughter of Haskell winner Paynter. In addition, Headland's dam has produced three dirt route winners, one of them a five-time winner at the trip, according to records from Daily Racing Form.
Headland will break from post 6 under Ramon Vazquez.
“I love the post,” Hobby said. “It’s easier for horses to relax on the outside.”
The chief threat appears to be W W Fitzy, who rolled by 6 3/4 lengths in a 1 1/16-mile allowance April 8 at Oaklawn. She removed blinkers for the race and stormed home for her eighth career win. W W Fitzy put up her best Beyer Speed Figure, a 94, and it’s also the best last-race number in the field Thursday.
Francisco Arrieta has the mount from post 5 for Contreras.
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Hobby has another notable runner entered on this closing week at Oaklawn. Tiz Life will make his career debut in the 11th race Friday, a maiden special weight at 5 1/2 furlongs. The 3-year-old son of American Pharoah is out of the mare Tiz Miz Sue, a Grade 1 winner of $1.1 million. Hobby trained Tiz Miz Sue for Tiz Life’s breeder and owner, Carol Ricks of CresRan. Tiz Life is a half-brother to Tatweej, who as a yearling sold at auction for $2.5 million.