One-turn mile suits Tenderfoot in Friday feature

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Though Tenderfoot would have been eligible for the $80,000 Caixa Eletronica Stakes on Saturday’s Claiming Championships card at Aqueduct, trainer and part-owner Charlton Baker opted for Friday’s second-level allowance feature at Aqueduct for his 4-year-old gelding.

“I think the mile is a little better than the seven-eighths,” Baker said.

Tenderfoot was a 10 1/2-length winner of a maiden $40,000 claiming race going seven furlongs on Oct. 29 at Belmont. In his two subsequent starts, both going one mile at Aqueduct, Tenderfoot won a starter allowance and a first-level allowance.

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In January, Baker stepped Tenderfoot up into the Jazil Stakes going 1 1/8 miles, and he was no match for Mr. Buff, finishing second and losing by seven lengths. On Feb. 28, Tenderfoot finished a well-beaten second at this same level behind Zoomer, who earned a career-best 104 Beyer Speed Figure.

Though Zoomer ran a big race, Baker wasn’t overly pleased with the trip Tenderfoot had in that four-horse field.

“We probably weren’t going to beat [Zoomer], but we got pinned down on the rail in a four-horse field,” Baker said.

Baker said he believes that Arch Cat, who ships up from Parx Racing for Daniel Velazquez, could have enough speed for Tenderfoot to stalk him. Eric Cancel rides Tenderfoot on Friday for a sixth straight time.

Per Capita came within a nose of Zoomer in December when he was trying this condition for the first time. That race was at 1 1/8 miles. Friday, he is cutting back to a one-turn mile. In spring 2020, Per Capita twice finished first in maiden races going a one-turn mile. He was disqualified from one of those victories.

Per Capita, trained by Todd Pletcher, breaks from post 5 under Kendrick Carmouche in this six-horse field.

Chestertown, a stakes-winning New York-bred, finished third, 18 1/4 lengths behind Zoomer, in the same race in which Tenderfoot finished second. He is 3 for 4 at Aqueduct, with two victories coming at a one-turn mile.

Sunny Ridge, the millionaire New Jersey-bred gelding, has been beaten a combined 65 lengths in two starts since coming off a 13-month layoff.

Earlier on the card there is a first-level allowance race for 3-year-olds going six furlongs. The race features Return the Ring, second in the Jimmy Winkfield Stakes, and Doctor K, who has won his last two starts by 10 lengths each.

Trainer Eddie Barker had basically conceded he would not find an allowance race for Return the Ring and was pointing him to the Grade 3, $250,000 Bay Shore Stakes on April 3.

“This is a tough a-other-than,” Barker said.

Barker thinks that with the swift Doctor K and Three Two Zone in the field, the race should set up for Return the Ring.

In the Jan. 31 Jimmy Winkfield, Return the Ring was beaten a head by Hello Hot Rod, who was winning his third consecutive race.

“I got beat by a horse that was coming out of a mile race,” Barker said. “He had a lot more bottom than I did.”

Doctor K will be meeting tougher horses than he faced dominating his last two races.

By George returns to Aqueduct, where he won a six-furlong maiden race by 5 1/4 lengths on Dec. 19. He drops in class after getting beaten 41 3/4 lengths in the Grade 3 Swale on Jan. 30 at Gulfstream.

By George, trained by Christophe Clement, will race on Lasix for the first time.