Laurel: Walkwithapurpose simply looks best in Caesar's Wish

Even a nitpicker would have difficulty finding anything negative to say about Walkwithapurpose, the 3-year-old filly whose credentials stand out in Saturday’s $100,000 Caesar’s Wish Stakes at Laurel Park.

A Sagamore Farm homebred daughter of the Argentine horse Candy Ride, Walkwithapurpose owns a 4-for-4 record at Laurel, including dominating stakes victories in the Maryland Juvenile Championship and the Wide Country.

All four of her wins have come at distances between seven furlongs and a mile, which means she will be comfortable in Saturday’s one-turn mile. Walkwithapurpose concedes no weight to her six opponents and as a Maryland-bred she is eligible for a $50,000 bonus in Saturday’s stakes.

“She is exactly where we want her to be at this point,” trainre Ignacio Correas said. “We feel she is really talented and has continued to step up every time she runs. She has done things so easy and has already won at the distance. We are looking forward to the next step in her career and hopefully she delivers Saturday.”

Correas indicated he would likely use the Twixt Stakes for Maryland-breds on April 6 at Pimlico as Walkwithapurpose’s prep race for the Grade 2, $500,000 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes on May 17.

Strictly on Beyer Speed Figures, the most recent races by Purple Plum and Seven Stars put them within range of Walkwithapurpose, who has put together back-to-back figures of 74 and 73 in her two stakes victories.

Purple Plum began her career upsetting a field of $25,000 maiden claimers at 16-1, earning a lowly 37 Beyer for that performance. But she improved dramatically in her second start, when she rallied from fifth to miss by three-quarters of a length going a mile against first-level optional $50,000 claimers. She soared to a 70 Beyer and has had four weeks to recover from that effort.

Purple Plum’s trainer, Jose Corales, has had good success with horses who finished in the money last time out trying a route for the second time. Over the past five years, Corales is 4 for 11 (36 percent) with that angle.

Seven Stars, from the high-percentage barn of Tony Dutrow, beat Purple Plum on Feb. 2, her second straight victory going a mile. Seven Stars was all out to prevail as the 4-5 favorite in that race and got a 71 Beyer.

There is a chance Ek Haseena will improve upon her fourth-place finish behind Walkwithapurpose while making two noticeable changes for the rematch. Ek Haseena did not move up wearing blinkers in her last two starts and trainer Fran Campitelli is removing that equipment for Saturday’s race. She also will be making her first start beyond seven furlongs.

Statistically, neither move is a strong one for Campitelli. His horses are just 1 for 9 after removing blinkers and 4 for 46 (9 percent) switching from a sprint to a route while returning in less than 30 days.