Stopchargingmaria comes off extended layoff for Madison
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Is she that good? Stopchargingmaria was good enough to win a pair of prestigious Grade 1 races at Saratoga last year, but can she win a Grade 1 race at seven furlongs after being sidelined more than six months?
That’s the question horseplayers will be asking when the $350,000 Madison Stakes is run as the first of five graded stakes on a blockbuster Saturday card at Keeneland.
Trainer Todd Pletcher has sent Stopchargingmaria, an earner of nearly $1.5 million from 11 career starts, through seven recorded workouts at Palm Beach Downs in south Florida since early February in preparation for her 4-year-old debut.
“She’s doing very well after a freshening,” said Pletcher. “We’re excited to get her season under way.”
Stopchargingmaria was precocious at 2, easily winning her first start at Saratoga in July 2013 in front-running fashion. She soon developed a stalking style while stretching out to longer distances, a strategy that served her well in winning the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks and Grade 1 Alabama within a four-week period last summer.
Stopchargingmaria, a Kentucky-bred by Tale of the Cat, will have John Velazquez aboard when breaking from post 3 in a field of just six fillies and mares in the Madison. Her chief threats include Sam’s Sister, a winner of two graded stakes in California over the winter for Jerry Hollendorfer, and Wedding Toast, a Godolphin homebred with five wins from eight starts.
The Madison, named for nearby Madison County, leads off the $1 pick six (races 6-11) and 50-cent pick five (races 6-10). Post time is 3:28 p.m. Eastern.
First run in 2002, the Madison was awarded Grade 1 status in 2009. Three horses have won it en route to being voted the female sprint champion: Informed Decision (2009), Groupie Doll (2012), and Judy the Beauty (2014).
Key contenders
Stopchargingmaria (Last 3 Beyers: 89-82-94)
* Race readiness at this shorter distance obviously figures as the most critical factor in determining her chances. There’s little doubt that she’s the class of the field, and she has fired three bullets in working toward this, a race that could launch a boomerang journey her connections are hoping will conclude with a run in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff here in late October.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 3 Stopchargingmaria. Trainer Todd Pletcher is 32-4-2-6 with a $0.63 ROI over the past five years going route to sprint following a layoff of 180 days or more (and 2-0-0-0 in graded stakes). Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
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Sam’s Sister (Last 3 Beyers: 93-88-87)
* Overachieving type made a successful quantum leap this winter from allowance type to Grade 1 winner when upsetting the La Brea Stakes at 12-1. She validated that effort by taking the Grade 2 Santa Monica Stakes in her following start, only to run fourth as the favorite behind Lady Sabelia and Princess Violet when shipped across the country for the Grade 2 Barbara Fritchie Handicap on Feb. 14 at Laurel Park.
Wedding Toast (Last 3 Beyers: 91-94-94)
* Mercurial 5-year-old mare has shown flashes of brilliance, such as when she earned a 105 Beyer Speed Figure amid a four-race win streak to end her 3-year-old campaign, but she has just one graded victory (the 2013 Comely) to show for it. She’ll be looking to redeem herself as a beaten odds-on favorite in her last start, the Rampart at Gulfstream.
Lady Sabelia (Last 3 Beyers: 100-91-97)
* The pride of Maryland brings recency and sharp form to Kentucky, having led throughout to notch her first graded victory in the Fritchie in her last start. She now has won four in a row, six of her last seven, and eight of her last 11. She could be the main speed here under Horacio Karamanos.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 4 Lady Sabelia. Won the Grade 2 Barbara Fritchie at Laurel last out. Runners from that race have gone 4-2-1-0 in their immediate next starts. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
Princess Violet (Last 3 Beyers: 97-96-93)
* New York-bred filly was the runner-up to Lady Sabelia in the Fritchie and has been turned over to Linda Rice by owner-breeder Barry Schwartz with Mike Hushion suffering from illness. She owns a useful stalking style that could be enhanced by a favorable outside draw.