Inside trio merit respect in Prairie Bayou

An interesting collection of 3-year-olds and upward will come together Saturday night at Turfway Park in the $60,000 Prairie Bayou Stakes at 1 1/16 miles over Polytrack.

The three inside entrants – Set the Sail, Cerro, and Joha – form a core of favorites among a field of 11 in the Prairie Bayou, which highlights a nine-race card at the northern Kentucky track.

Set the Sail, with Jon Court to ride, will be looking to rally off what is likely to be an honest-to-fast pace contested by Cerro and Vanity Feature. Trained by Charlie LoPresti of Wise Dan fame, Set the Sail won a Saratoga turf race this past summer by disqualification and appears to match up well with this brand.

The Prairie Bayou, named for the gelding who won the 1993 Jim Beam at Turfway prior to capturing the Preakness later that spring and breaking down in the Belmont Stakes, is the last of two stakes at the 16-day holiday meet. The 2013 winner was Cyber Secret, who set a track record in finishing in 1:42.26.

First post Saturday is 6:15 p.m Eastern, with the Prairie Bayou (race 6) set for 8:40.

The next Turfway stakes, and the first of seven at the three-month winter-spring meet, is the Jan. 3 Wintergreen.

KEY CONTENDERS

Set the Sail (Last 3 Beyers: 81-87-75)

◗ Gray gelding exits a series of tough races at spotlight tracks, and will go on hiatus for the winter, as per the normal LoPresti routine.

◗ It has been 15 months since he actually finished first, but a comfortable stalking trip from his favorable post could end that drought.

Cerro (Last 3 Beyers: 94-94-90)

◗ Maryland stable wastes little time getting this Irish-bred back in action, sending him here just two weeks after he finished a fighting third as the pacesetter in the Jewel, the richest race in the Claiming Crown series at Gulfstream Park.

◗ Trainer Dane Kobiskie has a career win percentage of 23 with more than 450 wins.

Joha (Last 3 Beyers: 84-87-88)

◗ A Grade 1 winner on synthetics at 2 (Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland), this colt has faced numerous top-class miler types and has struggled to recapture lost glory.

◗ He stands a decent chance, given the inside post and hot-riding Deshawn Parker.

Heuston (Last 3 Beyers: 86-84-72)

◗ Knocked out his first allowance condition at Churchill Downs after being denied in a heartbreaker at Keeneland, and now brings that momentum to the Polytrack.

◗ A just-miss over the Arlington synthetic in August suggests he could be a player with these.