Rare try around two turns for Lord Snowdon

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Tony Dutrow is hoping he can teach an older horse a new trick.

The 5-year-old Lord Snowdon has made 29 of his 30 career starts around one turn, winning eight of those races, including last January's Paumonok Handicap over Aqueduct's inner track. Friday, when Lord Snowdon returns from a five-month layoff, he will do so in an optional claimer going a two-turn mile over the inner track. It will be Lord Snowdon's first start around two turns since Aug. 12, 2006, when he finished third in a starter allowance at Monmouth.

Dutrow is trying this experiment because he felt Lord Snowdon was dropping too far out of his sprint races last year to win. He would rally to get a piece, just never the biggest one. Lord Snowdon was second in the Grade 2 General George, third in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap, and fourth in the Grade 1 Carter.

"As he was maturing he would get too far out of the race,'' Dutrow said. "I can't see him being an effective come-from-behind sprinter on the inner track this year. I'm interested to see how he handles the two turns. He's certainly bred to go long.''

Lord Snowdon, a son of Seeking the Gold, is a half-brother to Court Vision, who is coming off a win in the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby going 1 1/4 miles on turf last Sunday. Court Vision also won the Grade 2 Remsen, a 1 1/8-mile dirt race, as a 2-year-old.

Lord Snowdon has not run since finishing fourth as the 9-5 favorite in the Don Levine Memorial Handicap at Philadelphia Park on June 28. He has been working well at Aqueduct.

"He's ready to run,'' said Dutrow, who added that he wouldn't be surprised if the horse needed a race to be at his best.

Fearless Vision, trained by Pat Reynolds, enters this race in excellent form with a win and two seconds in his last three starts. He is 3 for 4 at a mile, but all three of this wins have come around one turn. He has yet to win around two turns.

Fearless Vision figures to be close to the pace along with Praying for Cash, who is 0 for 13 since winning a 6 1/2-furlong allowance race at Belmont in July 2007.

Hunting, who won the 2007 Stuyvesant Handicap over Aqueduct's main track, would benefit from a duel between Fearless Vision and Praying for Cash, as would Lord Snowdon, Judiths Wild Rush, and Dragon Fi.