Sarah Sis owns class advantage in American Beauty
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The six-furlong distance of the $100,000 American Beauty on Saturday at Oaklawn Park feels a tad shorter than optimum for Sarah Sis, but as a Grade 2 winner and an earner of more than $500,000, she is the class of the field.
The race starts the local sprint series for fillies and mares. Others making up the seven-horse gate include the stakes winners Super Saks, Haveyougoneaway, Donita’s Ruler, and Spring Included.
Sarah Sis will be making her first start since October, when she capped a strong 3-year-old season for owner Joe Ragsdale with a half-length win in the Raven Run at Keeneland. She also won last year’s Grade 3 Iowa Oaks at Prairie Meadows and the Grade 3 Honeybee at Oaklawn. The latter two races came around two turns, and moving back to that configuration is an objective for Sarah Sis next month in the $100,000 Bayakoa, said trainer Ingrid Mason.
American Beauty, Race 8
KEY CONTENDERS
Sarah Sis (Last 3 Beyers: 92-57-81)
◗ For her first start of the year, she will be shortening up in distance from the seven-furlong Raven Run, in which she tracked the pace and earned a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 92.
“She can run six furlongs,” Mason said. “She’s fast. I think she’ll be fine at the distance. Her optimal distance is seven furlongs to a mile, in my opinion. It just depends on how the race sets up.”
◗ Sarah Sis, as a fresh horse, could get a tracking trip off the quick Super Saks. Sarah Sis will break from post 2 under Julio Felix.
“My filly is very versatile,” Mason said. “We’ll see what happens out of the gate.”
◗ Sarah Sis has been flattered since the Raven Run, with two fillies she defeated returning to win their next starts. The fifth-place finisher, Forever Unbridled, came back to win the Grade 3 Comely at Aqueduct, while the seventh-place finisher, Ahh Chocolate, won an optional $62,500 claiming race at Churchill Downs.
Super Saks (Last 3 Beyers: 92-86-73)
◗ She is seeking her third straight win and is a threat to wire the field off a front-running effort in the $83,000 Dream Supreme on Nov. 27 at Churchill.
◗ Super Saks last year was a memorable, 11-length maiden special weight winner at Oaklawn.
◗ Terry Thompson has the mount for trainer D. Wayne Lukas.