Juveniles close out Ellis stakes for 2019

The last two stakes of the Ellis Park summer meet will be run Sunday when 2-year-olds take center stage at the western Kentucky track.

The $100,000 Ellis Juvenile and $100,000 Ellis Debutante, both to be run at seven furlongs, are designed as lead-ins to Breeders’ Cup Win and You’re In races on Sept. 14 at Churchill Downs, the Iroquois and Pocahontas, respectively.

Seven colts and geldings are entered in the Juvenile, while a near-capacity field of 11 fillies is set for the Debutante. First post for a 10-race Sunday card is 12:50 p.m. Central, with the Juvenile (race 8) going at 4:10 p.m. and the Debutante (race 9) at 4:40 p.m.

After Sunday, Ellis goes dark for four days before another three-day weekend starts Friday. The 28-day meet runs through Labor Day, Sept. 2, with Aug. 31 being dark to accommodate opening day of the Kentucky Downs meet.

Ellis Juvenile

Among the hundreds of horses in his care across the country, Steve Asmussen currently has full barns at Ellis and Churchill. With so many 2-year-olds from which to choose, it only follows that Asmussen will be represented by a major contender in the Juvenile in Rowdy Yates, an Oklahoma-bred colt who followed a rousing debut with a runner-up finish in his most recent start, the Grade 3 Bashford Manor on closing day of the Churchill spring meet.

Tyler Baze, who escaped serious injury in a spill last Sunday at Ellis, will be aboard Rowdy Yates from post 4. They can be expected to be on or near the early pace, along with Night Time, a front-running winner of his first and only start for Dale Romans, as well as longshot Jersey Town Angel and the enigmatic Alec and Arthur, who lost all chance in the Bashford Manor when he dwelt at the break.

“That wasn’t like him,” said John Hancock, trainer of Alec and Arthur. “He’s a real nice colt, as he showed in his previous races. We expect him to be very competitive Sunday.”

Foremost among the expected back runners is Letmeno, whose ninth-to-first run in his July 13 debut for Ian Wilkes was a real eye-catcher. “To make a move like that was really nice to see,” said Wilkes.

Asmussen won the 2016 Juvenile with the eventual Kentucky Derby runner-up, Lookin At Lee, and also swept the Juvenile exacta last year with Tobacco Road and Whiskey Echo. Romans won the 2017 running with Dak Attack.

Ellis Debutante

Lady Glamour outran her 33-1 odds by finishing third in Churchill’s longstanding version of the Debutante, then proceeded to prove the effort was no fluke, virtually replicating her Beyer Speed Figure in a July 26 allowance romp at Ellis for trainer Larry Demeritte. A $1,000 yearling purchase, Lady Glamour can clearly boast the top two Beyers (72 and 71) in this field. She breaks from post 4 under James Graham as the morning-line favorite.

“I thought I was getting a racehorse when I bought her so cheap last fall,” said Demeritte. “I thought about skipping this race with her, but she’s been training so well we’re going to give it a try.”

Among the more capable opposition is His Glory, whose trainer, Tom Amoss, won this race last year with the eventual Kentucky Oaks winner, Serengeti Empress. His Glory, with Edgar Morales riding, will break from the tricky rail post looking to rebound off a nearly 18-length drubbing in the Grade 3 Schuylerville on opening day at Saratoga. Interestingly, Serengeti Empress ran fourth in the Schuylverville before her breakthrough romp in the Ellis Debutante.

Other challengers include the Wesley Ward-trained Dixie Mo, back in Kentucky with the blinkers coming off following a failed attempt versus male rivals in the Tremont at Belmont Park; Spitefulness, a recent private purchase now being trained by Phil D’Amato; and the uncoupled Asmussen duo of Green Destiny and Milli Starr, both of them maiden winners at the current meet.