Letruska set to work for Apple Blossom

HOT SPRINGS., Ark. – Letruska, a South Florida-based runner who has been training at Oaklawn, is scheduled to work for the Grade 1, $1 million Apple Blossom this weekend, trainer Fausto Gutierrez said Tuesday. The Apple Blossom will be run April 17.

The work will be her first since she ran second by a head in the Grade 2 Azeri on March 13 at Oaklawn.

“It will be 21 days [since the Azeri],” Gutierrez said. “She gave a big effort. I want her fresh for this race.”

Letruska earned a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 99 in the Azeri. Prior to that start, she won a pair of Grade 3 races, the Houston Ladies Classic at Sam Houston and the Rampart at Gulfstream Park. Letruska is a multiple Group 1 winner in Mexico and races for her breeder, St. George Stable.

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◗ Oaklawn moves into its final month of the meet on Thursday, and Ricardo Santana Jr. continues to have a firm hold on the jockey standings, leading with 42 wins through Tuesday. He also leads his peers in mount earnings with $2.7 million, according to statistics from Oaklawn. There is a three-way tie atop the owner standings among Danny Caldwell, M and M Racing, and Jerry Caroom. The season runs through May 1.

◗ There is no racing Sunday at Oaklawn in observance of Easter.