Offlee Naughty gets the extra distance he wants
ELMONT, N.Y. – A lack of turf opportunities in Kentucky and California and a desire to run Offlee Naughty a distance of ground prompted trainer Michael McCarthy to send the horse to Belmont Park for Friday’s featured second-level allowance, scheduled for 1 1/4 miles over the inner turf course.
With long-distance turf opportunities scarce in California and with turf racing canceled at Churchill Downs for the last month of the meet due to issues with its new turf course, Offlee Naughty was at least able to find a suitable spot at Belmont that will give McCarthy an idea of how to race him the remainder of the summer.
“The lack of added-furlong allowance races in California makes it difficult for a horse like him, and with no turf in Kentucky it’s been a little inconvenient on some of these horses that are turf-dependent,” said McCarthy, whose primary base is Southern California but who maintained a string this past spring at Churchill, where Offlee Naughty was based.
Offlee Naughty won a first-level allowance going 1 3/8 miles at Del Mar last November and finished third in a nine-furlong allowance at Santa Anita in February. He finished fourth in the Grade 3 San Luis Rey at 1 1/2 miles. McCarthy felt Offlee Naughty dropped too far out of it early on.
At Churchill, Offlee Naughty finished sixth, beaten 4 1/4 lengths, in a 1 1/16-mile allowance on June 3.
“I don’t think he was appreciating [the course] at all, and a mile and a sixteenth, we definitely knew it was going to be way too short for him,” said McCarthy, adding that Friday’s race is “a stepping-stone to see where we go from here.”
“I definitely feel he belongs with these horses,” McCarthy said.
Manny Franco rides Offlee Naughty from post 5.
Mike Maker and Brad Cox both have two horses in this race, which also has a $62,500 claiming option.
Maker has Tiberius Mercurius and Bluegrass Parkway, both of whom are in for the tag. Tiberius Mercurius won this condition going 1 1/4 miles over Turfway Park’s synthetic surface in March. Bluegrass Parkway won the Kentucky Downs Preview Turf Cup last August but is 0 for 3 since, all in stakes.
Luis Saez rides Tiberius Mercurius from post 2, while Dylan Davis rides Bluegrass Parkway from post 6.
Cox sends out Slicked Back and Kinenos. Slicked Back was eighth in this condition here on May 1. He had to check in that race, but was already done. Kinenos won this condition here in April 2021 and is being offered for the tag.
John Velazquez rides Slicked Back from the rail. Javier Castellano is on Kinenos from post 3.
Kuramata goes out for trainer Chad Brown. He has finished fourth and third in two attempts in this condition. In his last start, Kuramata was 12 lengths back midway through the 1 1/16-mile race and was beaten 1 1/2 lengths while finishing third. His stablemate Flop Shot won the race, run April 14 at Aqueduct.
Jose Ortiz rides Kuramata from post 4.