Pipes leads Contessa team on Thursday card
RACE REPLAY IS NOT AVAILABLEOZONE PARK, N.Y. – Thursday should be busy at Aqueduct for trainer Gary Contessa, who has runners in four of the eight races on the card. He looks to have several live chances, led by Pipes, who is entered in the co-featured first-level allowance race for New York-bred 3-year-olds going a mile.
Pipes is coming off a second-place finish behind the loose-on-the-lead winner Not That Brady in the $100,000 Damon Runyon Stakes on Dec. 31. In that race, Pipes was down on the inside, came off the rail in midstretch – nearly interfering with Southern King – and ran on, albeit in vain, to finish three lengths behind Not That Brady.
“I thought he ran really well in the Damon Runyon and he has trained very well since,” Contessa said. “I think he’s going to give us the same kind of effort. I think it’s going to come down to who has the best trip. You can’t separate them by that much.”
Perhaps a wet surface – which is likely given the forecast – will aid Pipes. A son of Exchange Rate, Pipes won a 1 1/16-mile maiden race at Belmont in the slop by 6 3/4 lengths. The Damon Runyon was also run over a wet track.
“When you get an Exchange Rate you automatically think you have a turf horse,” Contessa said. “I was thinking he was a turf horse, but he’s a decent dirt horse and the farther he goes the better.”
Pipes will be coupled in the wagering with Southern King, as both count Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners among their owners. Southern King seemed to lose momentum when Pipes came out in front of him in the Damon Runyon, and he finished fourth. Todd Pletcher, Southern King’s trainer, is adding blinkers to the colt’s equipment Thursday.
It took Woodbury five times to win his first race, but he did so nicely on Dec. 30 under Manny Franco. Over the last 11 Aqueduct cards, Rudy Rodriguez, Woodbury’s trainer, has won 13 races.
Woodbury drew the rail. Rodriguez said he plans to have Luis Reyes – who takes over for Franco, who is named on Southern King – take him off the pace.
“Manny got him in a pocket, nice and comfortable, and he finished strong,” Rodriguez said. “Hopefully, we can do that again.”
Beachside, Hushion, and Kozciuszko add to the competitiveness of this field, which goes as race 6.
Contessa entered five horses for Thursday, but he re-entered Power Boss for Friday so, by rule, that horse will scratch Thursday. Among Contessa’s other runners Thursday are Today Comes Once, a first-time starter in a 5 1/2-furlong maiden race for 3-year-old fillies, and Canarsie Girl, a third-time starter in a one-mile maiden race for open-company 3-year-old fillies.
Contessa said Today Comes Once “is a horse I really like” but he’s concerned that 5 1/2 furlongs might be too short for her.
Contessa said Canarsie Girl improved from her first start to her second start and is looking forward to stretching her out from 6 1/2 furlongs to a mile.
“She has the look of a horse that wants to go a little farther,” he said.
