Morning Breez gunning for first stakes win in Ontario County

All you have to do is look at the weights assigned to the seven 3-year-olds entered in the $50,000 Ontario County Stakes on Monday at Finger Lakes to realize that the downstate shippers What a Catch and Morning Breez are the horses to beat.

What a Catch, as the lone stakes winner in the lineup, will carry 124 pounds in the six-furlong sprint for New York-bred sophomores. Morning Breez gets in with 122 because of the money he earned defeating What a Catch in a first-level, statebred optional-claiming race at Aqueduct in April. The five locally raced runners all carry 116 pounds.

While What a Catch is the highweight, Morning Breez will be favored. He defeated What a Catch by 2 1/2 lengths going 6 1/2 furlongs in April and then was run down late and finished second in the seven-furlong Mike Lee Stakes, in which What a Catch finished sixth.

Morning Breez, trained by Carlos Martin, may have cost himself the win in the Mike Lee when he lugged inward twice during the stretch run. He was beaten three-quarters of a length by the late-running longshot Analyze the Odds.

A $65,000 purchase by Martin and partners at the 2016 Saratoga sale of New York-bred preferred yearlings, Morning Breez has earned $168,000. He has finished third or better in five stakes and looks set to break through in the Ontario County.

What a Catch won the Rockville Centre at Belmont Park last July for Todd Pletcher, defeating Morning Breez by a length. He finished third in the Funny Cide and the Bertram F. Bongard stakes in his next two starts.

In the Mike Lee, What a Catch tracked a quick pace while down along the inside and then lacked the needed response from between horses when asked. He was beaten 6 3/4 lengths. He will need to find his best form Monday.

What a Catch will be ridden by Jaime Rodriguez, who through Thursday had 33 wins at the meet and topped the Finger Lakes standings by five.

John Davila Jr. has the mount on Morning Breez. Davila is third in the standings with 27 wins and has won with almost 28 percent of his mounts, tops among the regular riders at Finger Lakes.

Stormy Highway, the only three-time winner in the field, did not race well against allowance company June 11 while making his Finger Lakes debut for trainer Jeffrey Englehart. That was his first race since he won an open, $50,000 starter race at Aqueduct in January, and he is eligible to take a step forward Monday.

P J Advantage won a first-level allowance at Finger Lakes on June 5 and earned a 76 Beyer Speed Figure, which makes him competitive here. He is trained by Paul Barrow, who is having a good meet with 13 wins from his first 47 starters (27 percent).