Pearl Bay brings front-running credentials to Winter Melody

The first stakes of the Delaware Park meet, which opened Preakness Day, will be held Wednesday. The $50,000 Winter Melody Stakes is for fillies and mares, will be held at 1 1/16 miles, and has drawn a field of seven.

Wednesday stakes also are scheduled at Delaware on June 3 and 10.

The Winter Melody is a confusing race. Two horses are dropping out of graded stakes, two are making their first starts since the Feb. 14 Barbara Fritchie undercard, and two enter off victories against easier company. The entrants come out of races at five different tracks.

Although Pearl Bay has not raced since tiring to last in the Maryland Racing Media on Fritchie Day, she has the best early speed in the lineup. If she can shake free of Power of Snunner, who is stretching out from seven furlongs, she will be difficult to run down.

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KEY CONTENDERS

Pearl Bay (Last 3 Beyers: 40-77-95)

DRF FORMULATOR FACT: Trainer Cathal Lynch is 14 for 85 (16 percent) with a return on investment of $1.50 bringing horses back from layoffs of between 60 and 120 days. Pearl Bay has been off 95 days.

Power of Snunner (Last 3 Beyers: 90-87-73)

◗ She comes off two strong wins at Parx Racing over easier company.

◗ She will likely rate off Pearl Bay early in this race. If that is the case, they could run one-two around the track. If she challenges Pearl Bay early, the chances of both could be compromised.

Tapit’s World (Last 3 Beyers: 50-81-70)

◗ She has not fared well in three stakes starts since being transferred to trainer Michelle Nevin, but two of those races came against Dame Dorothy, who is 6 for 8 and won the Grade 1 Humana Distaff on Kentucky Derby Day. This is obviously much softer company.

◗ She will be making her first start since January.

Sea Shadow (Last 3 Beyers: 82-73-69)

◗ She had won four of her last five starts before finishing fifth and last in the Grade 3 Sixty Sails at Hawthorne last time out for trainer Ben Colebrook.

Opening-day notes

Trainer Mac Robertson had a big day Saturday, going 3 for 5 on the first card of the meet. Robertson finished tied for fourth in the Delaware standings a year ago with 23 wins.

Juan Vazquez, last year’s leading trainer at Delaware, was 2 for 2 on opening day. Vazquez was based at Delaware Park last summer but this year is stabled at the Middletown Training Center in Delaware.

◗ Carol Cedeno, the overall riding champion at Delaware Park last year – including Arabian races – and Alex Cintron, the meet’s leading Thoroughbred rider, each won two races opening day.

Cintron resumed riding on May 2 after breaking his jaw and fracturing other bones in his face in a Nov. 14 spill at Laurel Park.