Nominations out for next week's seven stakes
HENDERSON, Ky. – Big fields with a number of recognizable names are shaping up for the seven Kentucky Downs preview stakes to be run next Saturday and Sunday (Aug. 7-8) at Ellis Park.
Six of the seven stakes are worth $100,000 and serve as preps for much richer races to be run during the six-day Kentucky Downs meet Sept. 5-12. All are scheduled for the Ellis turf, given that Kentucky Downs is a turf-only course.
The three races scheduled for Saturday are previews toward the Turf Sprint and the Dueling Grounds Derby and Oaks. The four races Sunday are previews for the Turf Cup, Mint Million, Ladies Mile, and Ladies Sprint. The purse for the Turf Cup preview is $125,000.
Among the 223 nominations taken for the seven previews are Zulu Alpha and Arklow (Turf Cup), Somelikeithotbrown and Snapper Sinclair (Mint Million), Bango and Fast Boat (Turf Sprint), and She’sonthewarpath (Ladies Mile). Entries for Saturday will be out Sunday; entries for next Sunday will be drawn Thursday.
After next weekend, the only stakes date remaining is Aug. 15, when the Ellis Park Derby and Groupie Doll will highlight the richest card of a 31-day meet that runs through Sept. 4.
Flags Up has new partners
The only allowance on an eight-race Sunday card, which concludes another three-day weekend at Ellis, features the return of Flags Up, in whom partial ownership has been sold since he was narrowly defeated in track-record time.
Flags Up will have James Graham back aboard in post 1 when he faces nine others in the Sunday finale, a $52,000 first-level allowance at 5 1/2 furlongs on the turf. The 3-year-old gelding was beaten just a head in his last start July 9 when the winner, Privet Moon, lowered the Ellis record for seven furlongs to 1:20.69.
Since that race, the RSLP of Brook Smith has bought into Flags Up while keeping him with trainer Jimmy Baker, whose wife, Candie, retains an ownership share.
First post every day at Ellis is 12:50 p.m. Central. Mostly sunny skies and a high of 82 are in the Henderson forecast for Sunday, when the seven earlier races are all for maidens or claimers.
◗ Thirstforlife, a 7-year-old gelding with 26 starts on the Kentucky circuit, finished fourth Monday in the Grade 1 Barbosa in Puerto Rico after being claimed from his previous start on closing day of the Churchill spring meet.
Owner-trainer Edwin Vizcarrondo claimed Thirstforlife for $62,500 on June 26 before the gelding raced for El Du-ra-ko Racing and trainer Eric Betancourt in Puerto Rico. Thirstforlife has earned $522,657 from 41 starts.