Large Eatontown field has extremely deep cast

A $150,000 race can’t get much deeper than the Eatontown on Sunday at Monmouth Park.

The 1 1/16-mile turf fixture for fillies and mares, a Grade 3, drew an overflow field and multiple legitimate contenders.

“A mini-Breeders’ Cup,” deadpanned trainer Mike Stidham, who sends out multiple stakes winner Micheline.

Micheline was scratched from the June 4 New York Stakes because of a wet course; in April, the filly floundered over soft going at Keeneland in the Jenny Wiley Stakes. Micheline has thrived in recent training, but the Eatontown distance is on the short side.

“My preference would be a mile and an eighth and up, but we maybe want to try the Modesty [in July at Arlington] and this was the next spot,” said Stidham.

Crystal Cliffs won at a mile overseas but might want longer trips. After getting nipped on the wire in the Regret Stakes in June 2020, Crystal Cliffs “had a little bit of an issue that we had to give her some time for,” trainer Graham Motion said. Back racing April 24 in the $100,000 Dahlia at Pimlico, Crystal Cliffs took a clear lead to the stretch call but got nailed by Xanthique, another Eatontown entrant. Crystal Cliff’s rider might have moved slightly too soon, but the Dahlia might also have shown this lightly raced filly can be out-quicked in shorter races.

“With a race under her belt, I think she’d move forward,” said Motion.

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Chad Brown has two stakes winners this meeting and has two Eatontown chances, Nay Lady Nay and Counterparty Risk. Nay Lady Nay is 2 for 2 over the course, including the Grade 3 Matchmaker last summer. Her two 2020 wins came at 1 1/8 miles, and while Brown believes she can race effectively at 1 1/16 miles, her fourth in the Grade 3 Beaugay on May 8, her lone 2021 start, wasn’t her best race.

“She’s had some question marks, but she’s training well enough and with a race under her belt I’d think she’d move forward,” said Brown, who gave the Nay Lady Nay mount to Dylan Davis and has Nik Juarez on Counterparty Risk.

The latter won impressively in the Grade 3 Endeavour in February at Tampa but failed to run back to that performance in two subsequent starts. She races for the first time since April 11 and “seems like the kind of horse to run well fresh,” Brown said.

Vigilante’s Way is stuck in post 12 but closed into a slow pace and was second by a half-length last out to Mean Mary, who returned to win the $750,000 New York Stakes. She has shown pace in the past, but trainer Shug McGaughey said he’s “not going to send her from out there.

“Her last race was awfully good and she’s training awfully good. It’s competitive, but she should be competitive,” McGaughey said.

Competitive, indeed.

Myhartbelongstodady could be lone speed. Sweet Bye and Bye, scratched from two spots Belmont Stakes week, is in career form.

The Eatontown is race 11 of 13 Sunday. Post time is 5:02 p.m. Eastern.