Interesting Thursday card serves as weekend warmup

Pimlico’s program Thursday is definitely a “quiet before the storm” scenario, as anticipation builds for the next day’s seven-stakes Black-Eyed Susan card and the Preakness extravaganza that will follow Saturday, but it should provide a few interesting moments of its own.

The nine races include a deep first-level optional-claiming race for 3-year-olds that includes contenders from the New York stables of Todd Pletcher, Linda Rice, and Christophe Clement, in addition to Maryland-based horsemen Rodney Jenkins, Gary Capuano, and Graham Motion.

Two nice maiden races also are slotted, one at 4 1/2 furlongs for 2-year-old fillies, the other at five furlongs on the turf for fillies and mares.

Race 8, the 1 1/16-mile optional claimer, includes two stylish debut winners in Legit and Moonlight Shadow. Both used sustained runs from off the pace in their victories and will be stretching out around two turns.

Legit, trained by Pletcher, was put under a hand ride to go after the leaders on the far turn of his victory at Gulfstream Park. Once he got rolling, he didn’t stop, taking command of the mile race in upper stretch and pulling away to win by 7 1/4 lengths, with Tyler Gaffalione taking him in hand late.

The 85 Beyer Speed Figure Legit earned is the highest in the field on Thursday. Gaffalione is named for a return ride.

Moonlight Shadow, trained by Jenkins, made up a lot of ground to win going six furlongs. A half-brother to Phlash Phelps, a four-time stakes winner on turf, and De Francis Dash winner Action Andy, Moonlight Shadow was just starting to roll at the end of his race and should enjoy the added distance Thursday.

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American Lincoln won his maiden by 18 lengths at Aqueduct for Rice. Most recently, he finished fourth, beaten 5 1/4 lengths by Preakness hopeful Diamond King in the Federico Tesio at Laurel Park.

Threes Over Deuces chased home front-running Midnight Poker in the $85,000 Robert Hilton Memorial on the Charles Town Classic undercard, finishing second in the two-turn seven-furlong race for Capuano. Midnight Poker is undefeated in four starts.

The Clement-trained Felix in Fabula has two wins and two seconds in his last four races. He comes into this off a $50,000 starter victory at Aqueduct.

Motion sends out Lonely Weekend, who was second in a Laurel optional claimer last out while making his first start against winners.

In race 4, Wesley Ward sends out the 2-year-old filly Montana Sunset, who broke awkwardly at 7-2 in her Keeneland debut and finished sixth.

The field includes No Refunds and Margie Is Livid, who battled the length of the stretch in their Laurel debuts but were run down at the wire by Gallanor, who won by a head. It was a head back from No Refunds in second to Margie Is Livid.

In race 7, Miss Monk comes off two good efforts at Gulfstream for Alan Goldberg, who adds blinkers to her equipment and shortens her up in distance. She looks ready to win.

Her strongest challengers are Escapade, a first-time starter trained by Jonathan Thomas, and Off the Bourbon, a Motion first-timer, but they are both stuck on the also-eligible list.