Miss Double d'Oro tries to regroup in Wine Country Stakes
SANTA ROSA, Calif. – Trainer Neil Drysdale hopes a class drop and a change of scenery can help Miss Double d’Oro bounce back as the one to beat in the $50,000 Wine Country Stakes at Santa Rosa on Saturday. The 1 1/16-mile grass event for 3-year-old fillies drew a competitive field of nine.
Racing for Calumet Farm, Miss Double d’Oro won her maiden on turf at Santa Anita on April 11. Off a sharp second on turf at Santa Anita on June 5, she got a shot at the Grade 3 Senorita Stakes there June 27 but was not a factor, finishing seventh of nine at 24-1.
Another dangerous Southern California raider is Miss Boom Boom. Owned by Jerry Hollendorfer, Steven Melen, and Steve Taub and trained by Hollendorfer, she won on turf at Santa Anita on March 6 before finishing seventh in the Grade 3 Providencia there April 4. She bounced back to be a sharp second but was then sixth there June 5.
Buttercup Gold and Princess Bertrando finished in a dead heat for the win in an optional claimer on turf at Golden Gate on May 30. Buttercup Gold, another Hollendorfer trainee, hasn’t run since but returns with Russell Baze aboard. Princess Bertrando, trained by Jeff Bonde, returns to turf after a good third against elders in the California Governor’s Cup Handicap on dirt at Sacramento on July 11.
KEY CONTENDERS
Miss Double d’Oro (Last 3 Beyers: 83-80-74)
◗ Prize Exhibit, who beat her in the Grade 3 Senorita, came right back to easily win the Grade 2 San Clemente at Del Mar on July 19 and is now one of the favorites for the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks on Aug. 15.
◗ She will race longer than ever, but the way she rallied in her first three turf starts indicates that this distance should be no problem.
◗ Her sire, Medaglia d’Oro, has produced such Grade/Group 1 turf winners as Mshawish, Vancouver, Marketing Mix, and Coffee Clique.
Miss Boom Boom (Last 3 Beyers: 70-80-77)
◗ Her second, when beaten a nose, in an optional claimer at Santa Anita on May 2 looks better when you note that Star Act, whom she easily beat for third by 4 3/4 lengths, won her next start by 1 1/2 lengths.
◗ She hasn’t raced in nearly two months, but her two wins both came off layoffs similar to this.
Buttercup Gold (Last 3 Beyers: 82-68-58)
◗ She is 2 for 3 on grass, and the two wins came the two times she routed.
◗ The only two times she and Baze have teamed up, the result was her two turf victories.