Maidens lead feature-less Saturday card

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The $150,000 Top Flight Stakes did not have enough entrants to be carded as scheduled for Saturday – though it did have enough to be carded for Sunday – so the nine-race Aqueduct Saturday program lacks a true feature.

A trio of maiden races for New York-breds are sprinkled throughout the card including one for fillies 3 years old and up that includes two progeny of top sire Gun Runner.

Mulkey, who sold for $450,000 at last May’s Fasig-Tipton 2-year-old-in-training sale, and Mommasgottagun, both by Gun Runner, are part of a six-horse field entered in this six-furlong race that goes as race 2.

Mulkey, trained by Brad Cox for Flurry Racing Stables, was training at Turfway Park before being sent about a month ago to New York, where she’s breezed three times over the Belmont Park training track.

“She’s breezed pretty well. I liked her breeze out of the gate,” said Dustin Dugas, the New York-based assistant to Cox. “She’s done things very proper. She has a nice stride to her and is a smooth mover.”

Cox has two wins and two seconds from his last six first-time starters he’s sent out at Aqueduct, those two wins coming with New York-breds.

Manny Franco rides Mulkey from post 4.

Mommasgottagun, trained by Linda Rice for Sheila Rosenblum, sold for $180,000 at the 2022 October Fasig-Tipton Kentucky yearling sale. Mommasgottagun was entered to run last Saturday here but dropped Jose Lezcano in the post parade, ran off, and was scratched. No worse for the wear, Mommasgottagun is giving it another shot on Saturday.

“She got spooked by the pony and ran loose,” Rice said. “She’s fine, put her back in. Hopefully things go better this time.”

Though Rice is expecting a good effort from Mommasgottagun, she is concerned about the rail and that perhaps the six-furlong distance may be too short for her.

Lezcano is back aboard from the rail.

The race features two other first-time starters, La Fiere, who is by Noble Mission and looks more turf-meant for David Donk, and Lake Abanakaee, a 4-year-old daughter of Central Banker trained and partly owned by Robert Falcone Jr.

Eastern Star, also trained by Donk, has two seconds and three thirds from seven previous starts.

Hidden War Dance, last on debut April 4, is entered right back by Melvin Winney.

The other two maiden races for New York-breds are split divisions of a one-mile race for males that go as races 7 and 9.

In race 7, Bob John Ray gets blinkers in his second start for trainer Chad Brown, who has had success with that equipment change recently. From Feb. 11 through March 23, Brown has gone 5 for 6 adding blinkers, according to Daily Racing Form Formulator. Four of those wins were at Aqueduct, the other was Sierra Leone winning the Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds on Feb. 17.

Bob John Ray finished a well-beaten third on debut.

In race 9, Brown sends out the first-time starter Sir Magic, a son of Good Magic who brought $225,000 at Saratoga in 2022. Berning Beauty, Merlin’s Moment, and He Has It All look best of the ones who have already started.

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