Local stars can reassert dominance on Best of Ohio program

Ohio-bred champions Mo Dont No and Rivers Run Deep have been mainstays on the Best of Ohio program for the last several years. But both will be looking to get back in the win column to defend their crowns as the annual statebred showcase program comes to Thistledown.

Mo Dont No, two-time reigning Ohio-bred horse of the year and champion handicap horse, will be seeking his third consecutive victory in the Best of Ohio Endurance. Rivers Run Deep, Ohio’s champion sprinter every year since 2014, will be after a fourth victory in the Best of Ohio Sprint. Those two stakes are among five $150,000 stakes for Ohio-bred runners on Saturday’s card.

Mo Dont No, a seven-time stakes winner, won an optional-claiming race at Thistledown in his second start this season and hasn’t won since while competing primarily in stakes company. In August, he finished second in the Honey Jay Stakes behind Altissimo – who goes in the Best of Ohio Sprint – and second by a neck in the Governor’s Buckeye Cup to Let’scalliteven, whom he faces again Saturday. The Governor’s Buckeye Cup marked Mo Dont No’s only defeat in five starts at the 10-furlong distance of the Endurance.

Scott Spieth, aboard for those two most recent outings, retains the mount on Mo Dont No Saturday for trainer Jeff Radosevich.

Let’scalliteven, trained by Robert Bennett, finished third in last year’s Best of Ohio Endurance to Mo Dont No and Cake Pop, then won at this distance last out. That win kept him unbeaten in three starts at Thistledown.

Forewarned won this year’s Cleveland Gold Cup, but was sixth in the Buckeye Cup.

Sprint matches old pro, new star

Rivers Run Deep missed by a nose against upset winner Hijo de Sheltowee in the 2017 Best of Ohio Sprint in his bid for four consecutive victories in the six-furlong race. He comes back to this year’s edition having competed admirably against open and statebred stakes company for trainer Chris Hartman. After winning an optional claimer at Oaklawn to start this season, he finished second to rising star Altissimo in both the Edward Babst/Albert Palacios Memorial Handicap and Sydney Gendelman Memorial Handicap before finishing fourth in the Honey Jay. He most recently was second in an optional-claiming race at Churchill Downs. Channing Hill is in the irons Saturday.

Altissimo, trained by Richard Zielinski, burst onto the scene this year with four straight victories, three in stakes. He most recently finished third in the Buckeye Cup when stretching out to 1 1/4 miles. He cuts back to a more favored distance with regular rider Christian Pilares up.

Leona’s Reward tops Distaff

Leona’s Reward, trained and co-owned by Tim Hamm, is looking to bounce back in the Best of Ohio Distaff after finishing fifth in the Catlaunch Stakes. That was her first off-the-board finish since she checked in fourth in last year’s Distaff. She emerged from that effort to win the Ohio Debutante, Bobbie Bricker Memorial Handicap, and Dr. T.F. Classen Memorial Stakes. She then finished third in the George Lewis Memorial Stakes, Buckeye Native, and Pay the Man stakes, and second in the Miss Southern Ohio Stakes before the Catlaunch.

The 3-year-old filly Heavenhasmynikki, who was Grade 2-placed earlier this season, most recently won the Diana Stakes here on Sept. 22 by two lengths. The older females she defeated that day included multiple stakes-winning stablemate Proper Discretion, who checked in third in her bid for a repeat win.

School Board Prez, second in the Distaff last year, comes off back-to-back stakes wins in the Vivacious Handicap and Pay the Man.

Full fields for two juvenile stakes

Both 2-year-old stakes on the Best of Ohio program, the Juvenile and the John W. Galbreath Memorial for fillies, drew full fields of 14.

The Juvenile is topped by Magic Tale, who has won his first two starts, including the Cleveland Kindergarten, by a combined 16 1/2 lengths. Hoover Stakes winner Diamond Dust finished second to him in the Cleveland Kindergarten and is back for another try.

Danefield and Firsthand Justice finished second and fourth in the Loyalty Stakes.

Baby Nina, who won the Miss Ohio by nine lengths in July at Thistledown, returns home for the Galbreath Memorial after finishing 10th in the Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes at Saratoga.

Drillit was second to males in the Hoover and third behind Baby Nina in the Miss Ohio before winning the Tah Dah Stakes. Totally Obsessed and Market Success were second and third in the Tah Dah.

Financing Dreams comes off a third in the Emerald Necklace Stakes.