Snuggles, Victress renew rivalry in Monashee Handicap

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Snuggles is clearly the one to beat in the $75,000 Monashee Handicap for fillies and mares at Hastings on Sunday. She has never lost going the 1 1/16-mile distance of the Monashee, and in six starts going around three turns, her only loss came in the $100,000 British Columbia Oaks last year.

If there is going to be an upset, it could come from Victress, the horse who beat Snuggles at equal weights in the 1 1/8-mile Oaks. She will receive eight pounds from Snuggles, who has been assigned the high weight of 122 pounds.

The last time Victress ran at Hastings, she lost by three-quarters of a length to Snuggles in the Grade 3 Ballerina on Oct. 1. Trained by Rob Gilker, Victress hasn’t finished worse than second in Vancouver, and she won her maiden in her second start in the $50,000 Hong Kong Jockey Club. She is back at her favorite track after going unplaced in the $300,000 Zia Park Oaks on Nov. 23 and in a $62,500 optional-claiming race on turf at Santa Anita on Jan. 1.

Gilker likes the way Victress is coming up to the Monashee and said she had excuses in both of her races in the United States.

“She was making a strong move in the [Zia Park] Oaks, but she threw her head in the air when she hit the shadows in the stretch,” he said. “She was also running directly into the setting sun, and she just ran kind of green. In her race at Santa Anita, she threw her shoe coming out of the gate.”

Gilker was hoping for an easy half-mile move from her last Sunday and was surprised when the clockers said she went in 47.60 seconds.

“That was supposed to be a 50,” he said. “It was an awesome move.”

Victress is devoid of early speed, and with Chianti expected to set a fast pace, she shouldn’t mind the shape of the race. She drew post 2, with Amadeo Perez aboard.

Despite almost dumping jockey Rico Walcott when she reared coming out of the paddock and wasting a lot of energy being her usual rude self in the post parade, Snuggles still won the Strawberry Morn going away in her most recent start June 3.

“Hopefully, she will be a little better behaved Sunday, but I am not counting on it,” said trainer Dino Condilenios. “She is actually training better than she has all year though.”

Snuggles will break from post 4 under Walcott.

Since going unplaced in the 2015 Ballerina, Dear Lilly has won seven races, including the first two sprint stakes at Hastings for fillies and mares this year. The Glen Todd-trained 7-year-old held the lead turning for home in the Strawberry Morn but couldn’t hold off Snuggles in the stretch.

Sailingforthesun will be looking for her first win for trainer Robbie Anderson since she won the $60,000 CTHS Sales Stakes in 2015.