Pletcher may stretch out Illuminare in Smarty Jones

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - The first race from Saratoga on June 7 is the definition of a key race.

The seven-furlong maiden race was won by Illuminare, who came back to win a first-level allowance race on Saturday by 4 3/4 lengths. Itza Mirrakle, the runner-up from that June 7 heat, came back to win his maiden on Sunday by two lengths, making him the fifth next-out winner from that race. Rolling Along (5th on June 7), Mr. Papagiorgio (9th) and Clever Mischief (10th) each came back to win their next starts with Rolling Along and Clever Mischief doing so on synthetic and turf, respectively.

Illuminare, a son of City of Light owned by Centennial Stable and trained by Todd Pletcher, is now 2 for 2 with both wins coming at seven furlongs. Pletcher is of the opinion Illuminare may want to run farther and could give him that chance in the $200,000 Smarty Jones going 1 1/16 miles at Parx Racing on Aug. 24.

“I feel like he’ll stretch out,” Pletcher said. “That’s a possibility, but we have a lot of options.”

Meanwhile, Itza Mirrakle proved he could stretch out, winning Sunday’s 1 1/8-mile maiden race by two lengths, running the nine furlongs in 1:50.72. In the race he defeated Protective, who had finished third in the Grade 2 Wood Memorial and Grade 3 Peter Pan before finishing sixth in the Belmont Stakes.

“I was very confident he would get the trip until I saw the [past performances],” trainer Tom Morley said. “It’s not often you see a horse that’s run in three graded stakes including an American classic and you find him in a maiden special weight race. To beat him gives us a good benchmark with where this colt’s at.”

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.