Pleasanton: Outside Nashville faces own kind in Livermore Valley Wine Stakes

Trainer Jerry Hollendorfer has been wanting to run the 3-year-old colt Outside Nashville against his own age group all year, and he finally gets his chance Sunday in the $50,000-added Livermore Valley Wines Stakes at the Alameda County Fair in Pleasanton, Calif.

Outside Nashville, a son of Broken Vow who sold for $115,000 at the Ocala March sale as a juvenile, ran third at Del Mar last summer in his debut before finishing last in his next start.

Hollendorfer shipped Outside Nashville north and saw him graduate with ease at Golden Gate Fields on Oct. 20, and then turn in an even more impressive performance in winning the $54,000 Golden Nugget on Dec. 10.

After nearly six months on the sidelines, the colt was thrown in against older horses in May because Hollendorfer couldn’t find a suitable race against 3-year-olds. Outside Nashville ran three times against older foes, finishing third, fifth and second as Hollendorfer waited to run him against his own age group.

“I always thought he could run,” said Hollendorfer, who owns the colt in partnership with John Carver and Green Smith. “This race fits him right now, but there are some other good horses in there.”

One of the other good horses is Outside Nashville’s stablemate Our Cognac Kid, who edged him in a photo for fourth place in his previous start. Our Cognac Kid earned a career-high 83 Beyer Figure.

“I’d like to see how he runs against these,” said Hollendorfer, who claimed Our Cognac Kid with longtime business partner George Todaro for $32,000 from his winning debut.

Trainer Jeff Bonde will send out Saint Prado, who was nominated for the Triple Crown and has been running in routes, including a fifth-place finish in an optional claimer on turf at Hollywood Park in his last start May 30.

Although Saint Prado has never raced at Pleasanton, Bonde noted that the colt trained over the track at 2.

Saint Prado ran second as a maiden in the Lost in the Fog Stakes at Golden Gate Fields last year and didn’t run again until he won a maiden race at seven furlongs at Santa Anita on Feb. 16.

Saint Prado has been a pace factor in routes and should be tough in the stretch.

South Floyd, who has been shipped north by trainer Doug O’Neill, ran second in the Tim Conway Stakes at Santa Anita in October and third in his 2013 debut in a May 23 allowance race at Hollywood Park. The speedster drew the rail.

Multiple-stakes-placed Condiment and Los Tres Bohemios round out the field.