Sizing up the Europeans in Sands Point Stakes

There are four European shippers for the Sands Point Stakes, and here’s a look, in post-position order, at their overseas form.

Blond Me is a highly unlikely winner, and anything like her 10-1 morning-line odds would be an underlay. She’s come forward nicely this year, but her highest-level race was a last-out Group 3 where she lost to Nakuti, a listed-class horse (at best) yet to achieve an official rating of 100. By contrast, Osaila is rated 109, and Legatissimo, perhaps the best 3-year-old filly in Europe, is 116. Trainer Andrew Balding has gone 12-0-1-4 in the U.S. since 2005.

Malabar is a very legitimate horse (official rating 109) and deserves to be a shorter price here than Osaila, won’t be, and will offer value. She ran in three Guineas races, finished well in front of Osaila in the English 1000 Guineas, was pretty good in the French 1000 Guineas, and ran below form in the Irish 1000 Guineas. She rebounded last out, crushing males in a good Group 3 at Goodwood; third-place Latharnach was coming off a second-place finish to Gleneagles in the Group 1 St. James’s Palace. She hasn’t been this far, but her dam, while no great horse, was a 12-furlong type.

Osaila hasn’t run as well as Malabar and probably has more distance questions than that foe, but at least we know she travels and handles U.S.-style racing from her good third behind Lady Eli last fall at Santa Anita. She was second last out to a 33-1 shot of no great account in a Goodwood Group 3 race, and off both recent and total form, she appears inferior to Malabar.

Iromea has a nice race record of high placings and will stay the trip, but she has not been keeping company to suggest she is up to the task here. She has multiple-race form through Moonlight in Paris, who was a well-beaten fourth this month in a listed race at Bordeaux and could make no impact when stepped into a Group 3. She would have to really improve in an American-style race to prove a major factor.