Weather could still intervene, but if all goes to plan, Quint’s Brew will make his long-awaited return to Laurel Park in the $100,000 Bender Memorial Stakes on Saturday. Back against Maryland-breds for the first time since January, the 4-year-old gelding will be the likely favorite coming off a seven-month layoff. Trainer Ned Allard anticipates rain in the coming days and is still eying an allowance at Aqueduct later this month as a second option. For now, however, he said that he is leaning toward the race at Laurel. “It’s fun to have him back,” Allard said. “The reason we gave him some time off, he had run a lot of really tough races and had a very minor issue. The timing is going to be just right as far as I’m concerned.” Allard was left dejected when his gelding came up just short in two graded stakes attempts at Aqueduct. In April, the Maryland-bred finished a neck behind Crazy Mason in the Grade 2 Carter. In the Grade 3 Westchester the following month, he finished a half-length behind Bishops Bay, now a four-time graded stakes winner. The state-restricted seven-furlong sprint on Saturday should be a comfortable destination for Quint’s Brew, but the field of six is not short on contenders. Slam Notion, a 3-year-old gelding trained by Robert Bailes, will make his first start since winning the $100,000 Maryland Million Sprint in October, his third straight victory on dirt. :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. “He’s far exceeded anything I could have dreamed of early on,” Bailes said. Blue Kingdom, a 4-year-old gelding, has won four of his last five starts by a combined 22 lengths and will return to stakes company for Jamie Ness. In October, he took his chance in the $150,000 Maryland Million Classic, but the 1 1/8-mile distance proved too taxing for the front-runner, who faded to third. “Obviously, we know he can sprint,” Ness said. “He acted like he wanted to go a little farther, which he does, maybe a flat mile, but we tried the mile and an eighth and you could just tell that just wasn’t his thing.” Blue Kingdom and Quint’s Brew could both land near the front on Saturday, along with Showstopper Copper, who is cross-entered in a Laurel allowance on Sunday. Politely Trainer Mike Moore remarked that 4-year-old filly Takethemoneyhoney has never given him a bad race, finishing first or second in each of her six career starts. The rock-solid front-runner should be profoundly dangerous again in the $100,000 Politely on Saturday. “Honestly, you look at her form, and she runs well every time,” Moore said. “Really expect her to run well Saturday also.” In her stakes debut in May, Takethemoneyhoney made a statement when she dug in to win the $100,000 Serena’s Song by a nose at Monmouth Park, defeating Chad Brown-trained filly Catherine Wheel. Things went quiet after that, however, and the Maryland-bred did not run again until November, when Moore brought her back to Laurel for another strong effort in the $100,000 Willa On the Move. Settling off the pace for the first time in her career, the filly advanced from second and seemed a likely winner on the far turn, only to get nipped at the wire by Grammy Girl, a New York shipper trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. She will run a similar six-furlong distance Saturday. Trainer Brittany Russell, who has five horses entered in stakes at Laurel on Saturday, will enter 3-year-old fillies Grayson’s Girl and Conquerthosewecan in the Politely. Russell said that Grayson’s Girl, last-out winner of the $100,000 Safely Kept, is dependent on a sharp early pace to make up ground. Carousel Complexity Jane, “a special filly” in Russell’s barn, will try to wrap up her 3-year-old campaign with a third stakes victory in the $100,000 Carousel on Saturday. With limited opportunities, the tactical filly has done a great deal for her trainer and will now stretch out to 1 1/8 miles, the longest distance of her career. “I feel like she’s kind of a winter horse,” Russell said. “We ran her in a couple spots last summer and it didn’t go well, but I think she just likes the cold weather. She’s going to have to step up and run a race, but she seems to be training and be in a spot that she could do that.” Undefeated in her first two starts, Complexity Jane surprised Russell in her stakes debut when she stretched out to 1 1/16 miles and won the $150,000 Weber City Miss on April 19. Subsequent efforts in the Grade 3 Delaware Oaks and $100,000 Tyson Gilpin at Colonial Downs were far less inspiring, forcing Russell to give her a three-month break. When she returned in the $100,000 Thirty Eight Go Go in November, she appeared fresh as ever, kicking away to win by 3 1/4 lengths. She remains unbeaten in four starts at Laurel. The Carousel will likely be the most challenging race of Complexity Jane’s career, as she will try a longer distance against a deep field of 11. It will be an even stiffer challenge for her stablemate, Lute Warm, who will switch from turf to dirt for the first time since May 2024. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? 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