Risen Star Beyer Speed Figure raised five points
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The Beyer Speed Figure for the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes run Feb. 17 at Fair Grounds has been upgraded by five points. Originally given a 90 for winning that race, Sierra Leone now has a 95. All other horses in the field also received a five-point upgrade.
On Saturday, Sierra Leone came back to win the Grade 1 Blue Grass at Keeneland, earning a 98 Beyer. Also on Saturday, Resilience, fourth in the Risen Star, won the Grade 3 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, earning a 90 Beyer. On March 30, Catching Freedom, third in the Risen Star, won the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds with a 97 Beyer.
In explaining the upgraded Risen Star figure, Andrew Beyer said, “The Fair Grounds track was sloppy on Feb. 17, and may have been getting slower when the Risen Star was run. Moreover, the pace of the Risen Star was slow enough to hinder horses from running a fast final time.
“The subsequent performances of horses in the field demonstrated that our initial figure was too low,” he added. “Three of the top five finishers all came back to win important stakes, and all five of these horses earned speed figures five or more points higher than their published numbers for the Risen Star.”
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