Impressive debut winners clash

The fifth race at Laurel Park on Friday, a first-level optional sprint for 3-year-olds, matches a pair of promising debut winners, Bobcat and Blu Moon Ace.

Bobcat, trained by Dale Capuano, won a March 19 maiden race by 10 lengths. He was ridden by Jevian Toledo that day but will have Alex Cintron aboard Friday.

Toledo is serving a suspension for his April 9 ride in the Weber City Miss Stakes, where he was disqualified from first to second on In the Navy Now. Toledo will resume riding Saturday at Charles Town, where he has the mount on Sonny Inspired in the Charles Town Classic. Toledo rides at Laurel beginning Sunday.

Blu Moon Ace, trained by Lawrence Murray, won by 4 3/4 lengths April 3. Leading rider Trevor McCarthy has the mount.

McCarthy has 52 wins at the meet, five more than Victor Carrasco. The Laurel meet continues through May 8. Racing switches to Pimlico on May 12.

◗ Marcus Vitali is basing his stable at Laurel Park this summer and will have his first starters of the meet Friday. Vitali, who finished third in the Gulfstream Park trainer standings with 25 wins over the winter, has runners in races 5, 6, and 7.

Nik Juarez, who left Laurel for Florida at the end of December to ride for Vitali, is named on all of Vitali’s entrants. Juarez won 21 races at Gulfstream.

◗ Jockey Feargal Lynch, the brother of trainer Cal Lynch, is off to a good start at Laurel after having ridden the Gulfstream meet. Lynch has won eight races from his first 47 mounts.