Inner track has been kind to Awesome Vision

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – There’s something about Aqueduct’s inner track that brings out the best in Awesome Vision.

Awesome Vision, a 5-year-old son of Awesome Again, made it 5 for 10 over the inner track with an emphatic six-length victory in a New York-bred allowance race on Thursday, setting him up for a run in the $100,000 Alex M. Robb Stakes here on Dec. 31. Awesome Vision finished third as the even-money favorite in last year’s Alex Robb.

Thursday’s performance, for which Awesome Vision earned a 95 Beyer Speed Figure, was perhaps his best. He pulled away from the field to win by the largest margin he has ever won by, defeating multiple stakes winner Saratoga Snacks handily. Overall, Awesome Vision is 8 for 24 in his career.

“That’s the first time I’ve ever seen him win by daylight,” said Tom Albertrani, who trains Awesome Vision for Terry Finley’s West Point Thoroughbreds. “That was his most impressive performance. He probably had a little more time off between his last race and yesterday, and that might have helped.”

Thursday’s win broke a nine-race losing streak for Awesome Vision, who hadn’t won since taking the Move It Now Stakes by a head over Zivo on Nov. 16, 2013. Zivo went on to win six consecutive races after that, including the Grade 2 Suburban.

Albertrani liked the fact that jockey Javier Castellano kept Awesome Vision closer to the pace Thursday than he had in some of his previous races.

Albertrani said that Snowbell, who won the Grade 3 Comely Stakes here on Nov. 29, would likely stay in New York for the winter and could target the $100,000 Ladies Handicap on Jan. 31 as her next start.

“I’ll leave her in New York; she seems to do well there. She can be a little bit of a high-spirited horse,” Albertrani said. “With a name like that, you got leave her there for the winter, right?”