Street Babe connections consider options

The $400,000, Grade 2 New Orleans Handicap on March 28, the $1 million, Group 2 Godolphin Mile on March 28, and the $1.5 million, Grade 2 Charles Town Classic are the options being considered for the next start for Street Babe, trainer Michael Dilger said Wednesday.

Street Babe, a 4-year-old gelding based at Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida, won the Grade 3 Mineshaft at Fair Grounds in his third career start.

“Street Babe came out of the race real well,” Dilger said.

The gelding won his debut in a maiden race at a mile on Nov. 20 at Aqueduct. He came into the Mineshaft off a runner-up finish in a first-level allowance race going 1 1/16 miles Dec. 31 at Gulfstream Park.

Dilger said Street Babe is “just a very big, tall horse” who needed time to get to the races.

“It just took a while for him to come around,” he said.

Because Street Babe is a gelding, the chances of enhancing his graded stakes credentials won’t factor into the choice for his next race, Dilger said.

“His value is on the racetrack as to what he can earn in prize money,” he said.