Smooth Bid slickly spotted

Smooth Bid will be making a dramatic class and distance move on Saturday night when he drops from Grade 3 company and shortens up slightly in distance for the $40,000 Texas Heritage Stakes at Sam Houston Race Park.

The one-mile race for 3-year-olds drew a full field of 12, including stakes winners Leaving on My Mind, My Parade, and Major League, who in his last start was fifth to Greater Good in the $100,000 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn on Feb. 19.

won the $84,000 MEC Mile at Remington Park on Nov. 21. Following that race, he ran a big second in the Grade 3 Lecomte, a mile race at Fair Grounds. He was beaten a neck by Storm Surge in that race, earning a career-best Beyer Figure of 82.

In his most recent start, Smooth Bid finished ninth in the Grade 3 Risen Star at 32-1. Smooth Bid shows a near bullet four-furlong work in 48.20 seconds at Fair Grounds since the 1 1/16-mile Risen Star.

He will be making his third start back from a winter freshening in the Texas Heritage, and trainer Steve Asmussen has given the mount to Donnie Meche. Smooth Bid, who is a son of Rubiano, races for Dakota Stables and Cash Asmussen, brother of Steve Asmussen.

Smooth Bid could get a nice stalking trip in the Texas Heritage behind a handful of colts to his inside who will be stretching out around two turns. One of his chief rivals in the stretch should be Leaving on My Mind.

Leaving on My Mind lost a good amount of ground at the start of the $125,000 Jim's Orbit division of the Texas Stallion Stakes in his last start Feb. 19, when he broke in the air then was hung wide. Leaving on My Mind, a four-time stakes winner, will be making his his second start back from a layoff in the Texas Heritage. Roman Chapa has the mount for trainer Danny Pish.