Necker Island needs better journey than last time in Hall Memorial

Necker Island’s transition from a Kentucky Derby also-ran to an effective sprinter has been rather remarkable, “although it’s nothing we did with the way we’ve trained him or anything,” said Chris Hartman. “He’s just a natural.”

Necker Island, trained by Hartman for The Scherr Boys, once again will try to flaunt his wares as a one-turn specialist as one of the favorites in an oversubscribed field of older horses in the $75,000 Jeff Hall Memorial.

Special first post Sunday is 10:30 a.m. Central, with the Jeff Hall going at 1:46 p.m. as the eighth of nine races. Ellis moved its races all this weekend from the normal starting time (12:50) because of oppressive heat forecast for the western Kentucky region in which the 100-year-old track is located.

Necker Island was ninth as a 49-1 outsider in the Kentucky Derby run in September 2020 before Hartman came to realize that shorter distances would make the son of Hard Spun more productive. In the nearly two years that have elapsed, his bankroll has risen to $735,897, much of it from six victories that include the Bet On Sunshine last fall at Churchill Downs.

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In his most recent start three weekends ago, Necker Island had what Hartman described as “a nightmare trip” when a belated second in a six-figure allowance sprint at Churchill Downs.

“Bottom line is we’ve got to get a better trip than we did last time,” said Hartman, who once again will give a leg up to his go-to jockey, Mitch Murrill.

Necker Island will break from post 1 when having Kneedeepinsnow (post 4, Gabriel Saez) and Bango (post 5, Marcelino Pedroza) as his chief threats. They were the respective third- and fourth-place finishers in the Kelly’s Landing on closing weekend of the Churchill spring meet.

The Sunday feature honors the memory of Jeff Hall, a longtime Ellis employee who died June 4 at the age 75. The race effectively replaces the Good Lord, won last year by Bango.

Happy Jack favored

Happy Jack, a last-out allowance winner at Churchill after finishing 14th in the Kentucky Derby and eighth in the Preakness, returns to action on the Sunday undercard at Ellis as the likely favorite in race 6, a second-level allowance going a mile on the main track out of the elbow chute.

Trained by Doug O’Neill for owner-breeder Calumet Farm, Happy Jack will have Rafael Bejarano back aboard when facing nine other 3-year-olds and upward for a maximum purse of $62,000. The Oxbow colt earned a career-best 88 Beyer Speed Figure when turning back to seven furlongs in his latest start June 19.

◗ Jockey Mickaelle Michel recorded her first victory in North America when Friar Laurence won an Ellis allowance last Sunday at a $24.40 mutuel. The breakthrough win came in the 17th U.S. mount for Michel, a 27-year-old French native who has ridden with success in other jurisdictions worldwide, including Japan.