Slew's Tiz Whiz, third in the Longacres Mile, drops into no-conditions allowance

Slew’s Tiz Whiz is the horse to beat in Saturday’s one-mile, no-conditions allowance feature at Emerald Downs. Fresh off of a close third-place finish in the $150,000 Longacres Mile, the Tom Wenzel trainee will meet five others, a trio of whom finished behind him in the Mile.

Having won the Mile in 2022, the son of Slew’s Tiznow was third in the race a year ago. His strong finish in this year’s renewal was overshadowed in many corners by the come-from-behind nose victory of Five Star General.

Chief among the competition is Arma d’Oro, the fifth-place runner in the Mile who finished in a dead heat with Slew’s Tiz Whiz for the win in the Governor’s Stakes over 6 1/2 furlongs on July 21. The son of Violence has won 2 of 3 starts since being claimed on June 2 by trainer Justin Evans.

“Arma d’Oro was unlucky in the Mile, didn’t get a great trip,” said Evans, in reference to his and a handful of others being carried outward entering the first turn.

The gelding was handy enough to put himself into good position very soon after having been carried out, but the delay may have cost him.

Arma d’Oro “worked super the other day, should run big,” said Evans, who also will saddle Surprsinglyperfect, who finished eighth in the Mile, in Saturday’s race.

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Of the latter, the conditioner said: “He was outclassed the other day but deserved the chance.”

Nine-year-old El Alto Hombre has 18 career wins, though he is only 1 for 14 at Emerald Downs. A son of Archarcharch, El Alto Hombre won a maiden race at long-shuttered Portland Meadows in fall 2017, Until recent years, he was a regular on the Oregon fair circuit.

Howard Belvoir-trained Muncey, a distant seventh in the Longacres Mile, will return to the allowance ranks in which he was a winner June 30. The son of Munnings finished 10 1/2 lengths behind both Arma d’Oro and Slews Tiz Whiz in the Governor’s Stakes.

The other runner in the group, Napoletano, seems rather outclassed. He won the first race of the day on the Longacres Mile card, a 6 1/2-furlong affair at the $10,000 claiming level. In addition, the son of Kentucky Derby winner Orb has raced beyond 6 1/2 furlongs just once in his life. He finished eighth, beaten 14 1/4 lengths, in the Muckleshoot Derby in August 2022.

Slew’s Tiz Whiz must always overcome pace variables to be successful, but he can race closer to the early tempo when a situation demands.

Arma d’Oro will surely get first jump on Slew’s Tiz Whiz, and the 990-foot stretch will determine whether that is enough.

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