Miss Mary Nell, a 3-year-old filly trained by Carlos David, will take on a small group of 3-year-old male runners at Gulfstream Park on Friday in the eighth race, a $58,000 allowance run at 1 1/16 miles on synthetic. Though it will be her first time running against the boys, Miss Mary Nell will have a natural rival in Iron Hand, a Jose D’Angelo-trained colt whose most recent victory closely mirrors one earned by the filly last time out. After a statebred victory in March, Miss Mary Nell reentered open company on April 10 and won a $57,000 allowance at Gulfstream, completing a mile and 70 yards in 1:40.96. The following day, Iron Hand made his first start in open company off a layoff and won at the same allowance condition for males, completing the same distance in 1:41.27. Both runners earned 72 Beyer Speed Figures for their victories. David originally wanted to enter his filly in another race restricted to female runners, but he was convinced to change his plans to help fill this field. It may not be his first choice for Miss Mary Nell, but she has now won two races in a row in photo finishes and improved in four straight starts since January. “If she wins here, I definitely have to take her out of here,” David said. “I don’t think they have enough stakes here for her. I think it will open her up to other races if we ship up north to Monmouth Park, maybe New York. Her races are very limited here.” :: Play Gulfstream Park with confidence! DRF Past Performances, Picks, and Clocker Reports available now. Iron Hand also enters on a two-race winning streak. He will likely try to stalk Miss Mary Nell and other potential front-runners. The running style has not let him down since D’Angelo switched him to synthetic in January. The two recent synthetic winners are sure to gain attention from bettors, but they may not end up as favorites in a competitive field of six. In addition to Iron Hand, D’Angelo has entered McKellen, a colt who returned from a layoff in April to finish fifth and last in the $150,000 Bay Shore at Aqueduct. He will make his synthetic debut on Friday after four starts on dirt. “We’re looking to try McKellen on the [synthetic] because he looked so good at two years old,” D’Angelo said. “I think the change in surface can be good for him.” Patrick’s Promise, a colt trained by Christophe Clement, finished second by a neck behind Iron Hand last time out. In his second start back from a short layoff, he will stay on synthetic after spending his early career on the turf at Colonial Downs and Tampa Bay Downs. Formulate, a gelding trained by Rohan Crichton, may be the runner with the most unique past performances in the field. In three career starts, he has run on all three surfaces at Gulfstream, winning a maiden race on synthetic and finishing well behind in the $95,000 Armed Forces on turf last year. In March, he returned from a winter break and won his dirt debut in a $38,000 allowance. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.