Skelly, Walker's Win try to stretch streaks in Lake Hamilton Stakes
?q=100)
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Walker’s Win will have to catch a razor-sharp Skelly if he’s to win his seventh consecutive race Saturday in the $150,000 Lake Hamilton at Oaklawn Park.
The six-furlong sprint for 4-year-olds and up is one of two stakes on the meet’s final card. The $200,000 Arkansas Breeders’ Championship, led by Gar Hole, drew a field of 14.
Skelly is seeking his fourth straight win at the meet. He won a first-level allowance in February, a second-level allowance in March, and the Grade 3, $500,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap on April 15.
“Three-quarters at Oaklawn has kind of been his thing, so I want to keep him doing it,” said trainer Steve Asmussen. “We’re pleased to be in the position we’re in.”
Skelly earned a meet-high Beyer Speed Figure of 105 in the Count Fleet. He set a quick pace and prevailed by 2 1/4 lengths while covering the distance on a fast track in 1:09.20. Tejano Twist, who was third, runs back Saturday in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs.
Skelly will break from post 5 of 7. His regular rider, Ricardo Santana Jr., will be aboard for Red Lane Thoroughbreds.
Walker’s Win could get a tracking trip from post 7. He enters off an allowance win at Hawthorne in which he defeated Tape to Tape, ending that one’s four-race win streak. Tape to Tape returned one start later to capture a first-level allowance at Oaklawn with a 91 Beyer.
Walker’s Win earned a 90 for his two-length victory over Tape to Tape. He is making his first start outside of Illinois, where his streak began in a maiden special weight over Illinois-breds at Fairmount Park in his third start May 21. He won twice more against statebreds before defeating open company in a trio of races at Hawthorne.
“We kept him around Illinois and maximized all our conditions we could,” said trainer Scott Becker. “I thought this would be a good little try for him. It’s actually three weeks out from an Illinois-bred stakes May 28 at Hawthorne.”
Becker said Walker’s Win’s strong last-out race and the subsequent success of Tape to Tape led him to look at the Lake Hamilton. Walker’s Win will be making his stakes debut.
“It made me think we’ve got a shot to make a little noise,” said Becker, who has given the mount to Mitchell Murrill.
Ark. Breeders’ Championship
Gar Hole, who has established himself as a top Arkansas-bred sprinter, moves to two turns for the first time in the Arkansas Breeders’ Championship.
The 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-olds and up bred in Arkansas drew Man in the Can, a past Arkansas-bred of the year who drew post 14 off a win at this distance at Oaklawn, and King Peanut, winner of last month’s Rainbow Stakes.
Gar Hole starts from post 11 under Keith Asmussen.
“This horse is very smart,” said trainer Johnny Ortiz. “We’ve been working him behind Black Apple, which we know is a two-turn horse, and he seems to be rating and settling well behind Black Apple. We’re very happy with the way he’s training into this race.”
Gar Hole is owned by Shortleaf Stable, which was recently named 2022 breeder of the year by the Arkansas Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Horsemen’s Association.
“Hopefully, he’ll find himself up close,” Ortiz said. “Maybe we can cover him up, make one big move on the end.”
The 12-race card includes an appearance by Rated R Superstar, an earner of $1 million at Oaklawn. He goes in the fourth race, a two-other-than allowance at a mile that carries a $50,000 claiming option that enables the accomplished 10-year-old to get into the field.
:: Get Daily Racing Form Past Performances – the exclusive home of Beyer Speed Figures
“He’s in for what I claimed him for two years ago,” said owner Danny Caldwell. “He’s not eligible for any kind of conditioned race. I was hoping for a straight allowance.”
Rated R Superstar, who won four stakes last year, enters off a seventh-place finish behind Proxy, Last Samurai, and Stilleto Boy in the Oaklawn Handicap.
“I feel like the last race, he faced three of the top 10 horses in the country,” Caldwell said. “He came out of the race really well, was ready to run the next day. I think a little lesser company will be better for him.”
The card and meet’s last race is the Trail’s End, a $10,000 starter allowance over 1 3/4 miles that is worth $125,000.
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.