Thursday TimeformUS Highlight Horse: Rejuvenated Heaven Street finally gets back on turf

Saratoga | Race 7 | Post Time 4:28 p.m. (ET)

This starter allowance with a $50,000 claiming option going 5 1/2 furlongs on turf might be the most competitive race on the entire Thursday card. There isn't a clear favorite among the 9 runners entered for grass, though Chess Master (#3) seems like one of the more logical contenders. This 9-year-old has achieved 15 career victories in turf sprints and has run well in all 3 attempts over this distance at Saratoga in the last two seasons. His 2025 form has been solid, achieving a five-furlong win at Gulfstream before running respectably in a race rained off the turf at the Spa last month. His tactical speed should put him in an advantageous stalking position.

Maya Prince (#6) is one of several competing for the $50,000 optional claiming tag, as he drops in class out of a series of tougher races dating back to last summer. He was mildly overmatched in his lone start of the season when unable to close in a speed-dominated stakes at Laurel. His form tailed off at the end of last year, but he's getting logical class relief and should contend here with any progression second off the layoff.

There is some speed in here, but typical front-runner It Can Be Done (#2) hasn't sprinted since 2021 and doesn't seem fast enough to make the lead at this distance. Scheduling Dude (#9) is shown leading on the TimeformUS Pace Projector, but he's never run on turf before.

That should put Heaven Street (#4) either on the lead or sitting right on top of a moderate early pace. It's been a while since this 6-year-old has run a race that makes him competitive at this level, but there are some signs that he's cycling back up to a stronger performance. He once was capable of producing form that would beat this field, such as when he won a high-level allowance race going this distance at Keeneland in October of 2023. He's tailed off since then, but he had a valid excuse when he completely botched a start last September. He went to the sidelines soon after, but he now returns in the barn of Ilkay Kantarmaci, who has rejuvenated several older claimers in New York this year. Heaven Street actually put in the best dirt effort of his career off the layoff two back when displaying excellent early speed before fading, earning a competitive 107 TimeformUS Speed Figure on a surface he's never liked. That signals that he can still run, and I like that he's ambitiously placed once again as he gets back on turf.