Howling Time wins Street Sense, Sandstone takes Rags to Riches
RACE REPLAY IS NOT AVAILABLE
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Howling Time and Sandstone took giant steps toward the next round of major 2-year-old races at Churchill Downs on Sunday by capturing stakes that began the 21-day fall meet.
Howling Time was a 3 1/4-length winner of the $200,000 Street Sense nearly three hours after Sandstone was an easy winner in a short field in the $197,500 Rags to Riches. The 1 1/16-mile races anchored the traditional “Stars of Tomorrow” fall-meet opener for 2-year-olds only, with both races serving as key preps toward the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club and Grade 2 Golden Rod on the final Saturday of a meet that runs through Nov. 28.
The dirt-only meet began with an 11-race card conducted over a fast main track and held amid mostly cloudy skies but pleasant conditions. Since late June, Churchill has been in the process of renovating its turf course, which is scheduled to be available again at the 2022 spring meet.
Street Sense
Howling Time, always in a clear tracking position under Joe Talamo, moved toward the leading group in the final turn before continuing resolutely in the Street Sense, finishing in 1:44.68 and returning $5.80 as favorite in a field of seven. Red Danger held for second after racing in contention from the start, with Red Knobs rallying mildly for third, another four lengths back.
Dale Romans trains Howling Time for the Albaugh family of Iowa. Now unbeaten in two starts after winning on debut at Churchill in September, the colt is from the first crop of Not This Time, who suffered a career-ending injury shortly after finishing second in the 2016 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in what was a huge disappointment for Romans and the Albaughs.
“We’ve loved this colt from the start,” Romans said from California, where he is preparing for the upcoming Breeders’ Cup. “This is the kind of thing we talked about after Not This Time got hurt, that maybe one of his sons or daughters could make up for it some day.”
The win was the second on the card for Talamo, who upset the previous race, a $128,042 allowance mile, with Texas Red Hot ($37).
Rags to Riches
Sandstone ($7.40) turned back a brief bid from heavily favored Yuugiri when drawing off to a 10 3/4-length score in the Rags to Riches, which drew a field of just four fillies.
Always on the lead under Brian Hernandez Jr., Sandstone was challenged at the top of the stretch by Yuugiri, the 3-5 favorite, and responded at once when spurting away to her second win in three career starts. Trained by Ken McPeek for Susan Moulton, the dark bay daughter of Street Sense was coming off a nine-length maiden win on closing day of the September meet at Churchill. She paid $7.40 as second choice after finishing in 1:44.18.
The Rags to Riches win was among four on the day for Hernandez, who escaped injury in the meet finale Saturday at Keeneland when thrown from his mount.
McPeek, who had a combined four winners on the last two cards of the Keeneland fall meet that ended Saturday, also won a $122,040 allowance Sunday with Penny Saver ($2.40), a 10 1/2-length winner of the eighth race. His day was tinged, however, with the news that his Breeders’ Futurity winner, Rattle N Roll, has been withdrawn from the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile with a minor foot bruise.
Stewart with three wins
Trainer Dallas Stewart enjoyed an unforgettable afternoon when saddling three winners, all in rich maiden-specials, on an eventful Sunday undercard.
Stewart sent out a pair of first-time starters, Spartan Army ($38) and Ben Diesel ($30.80) to win the third and fourth races, respectively, before also winning the seventh with B Sudd ($10), making his second start.
*** The first of four straight five-day race weeks at the meet begins Wednesday.