Trincadeiro tough foe for Artois

Artois, winner of the Hazel Wright Sire Stakes in her last start, will be looking to double up in Friday's $50,000 R.C. Anderson at Assiniboia Downs.

The Anderson, a one-mile race for Manitoba-bred 3-year-old fillies, lured eight runners.

Friday's card also will feature the $30,000 Debutante, the first 2-year-old stakes of the meeting. It attracted a field of just five fillies.

Artois, owned and trained by Lise Pruitt, defeated maiden claimers in her first start of the season and then finished third in open first-level allowance company. In against fellow Manitoba-breds in the Hazel Wright, Artois stalked the pace and came on to score by a neck under Jerry Pruitt, who retains the mount.

Trincadeiro, who finished fifth when making her stakes debut in last fall's open Osiris at six furlongs, will be facing Manitoba-breds for the first time in the Anderson and could be the one to beat. In her last start, which came at one mile in a first-level optional claiming race for fillies and mares, Trincadeiro finished third behind a pair of older rivals.

Mark Anderson retains the mount on Trincadeiro, who sports the best last-out Beyer Speed Figure in the field with a 49 and will be racing with Lasix for the first time.

Fabulous Fifty and Far Too Lucky, who were making up ground when finishing second and fourth in the Hazel Wright, also should attract some support in the Anderson.

Far Too Lucky adds blinkers after being beaten 1 1/2 lengths.

Fabulous Fifty, a neck behind Artois in that last encounter, came back to finish fourth when facing older rivals in a one-mile allowance race for Manitoba-breds.

* Little Widow Maker will be looking to follow in the footsteps of Miss Missile, Lady Countdown, and Ruby's Big Band and give Minnesota-based trainer Charlie Smith his fourth straight win in the Debutante.

In her only start, Little Widow Maker rallied strongly to finish second in a five-furlong race at Prairie Meadows.

Spanish Royalty, who also shipped in from Canterbury Park, just missed with a front-running effort in her five-furlong debut and adds blinkers for Friday's supporting feature.