Stradivari, Union Jackson earn stakes starts

LEXINGTON, Ky. – For all the impressive stakes performances here over the weekend, led by Miss Temple City in the Grade 1 Maker’s 46 Mile and Tepin in the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley, there also were some notable efforts in the allowance ranks.

In fact, the May 21 Preakness got a prospective starter when Stradivari earned a 100 Beyer Speed Figure in winning a first-level, 1 1/8-mile allowance by 14 1/2 lengths Sunday under John Velazquez. Trainer Todd Pletcher confirmed Monday that he will consider the Preakness or the May 14 Peter Pan Stakes for the 3-year-old Medaglia d’Oro colt.

Steve Asmussen also said “it’s time to step up” into stakes company for the first time with Union Jackson, a Stonestreet Stables 4-year-old who got a 94 Beyer in an easy allowance win Friday.

◗ With half of the 16-day Keeneland spring meet in the books, Luis Saez tops the jockey standings with 13 winners, but his three-win lead doesn’t figure to stand through the April 29 finale. Although Saez is named on four mounts here Wednesday, he will miss most of the rest of the meet when he returns to ride at Aqueduct. His departure will leave Javier Castellano, the leading jockey here last spring, well spotted for another title with 10 wins entering the action this week.

Mark Casse has the most wins (7) and starts (32) among trainers, while one of his main clients, Conquest Stables, leads all owners with three wins.

◗ Ignacio Correas became well known to Maryland racing fans as the trainer for Sagamore Farm before he left in March 2015 to open a public stable in Kentucky.

Without Sagamore stakes winners such as Walkwithapurpose and Millionreasonswhy in his barn, Correas, a 56-year-old native of Argentina, has mostly struggled on this circuit. But he made fans sit up and take notice Sunday by upsetting the nightcap with a gray 6-year-old named Kasaqui, who won the third-level turf allowance at 40-1 under Paco Lopez.

◗ Trainer Vicki Oliver said Personal Diary could wheel back in the Grade 3 Bewitch Stakes on closing day, April 29, after she returned from a five-month layoff with a hard-fought allowance victory here last Wednesday. Personal Diary, 5, won the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks as a 3-year-old.