Triple co-features part of late pick five
LEXINGTON, Ky. – All racetracks should have it so good. Keeneland plays out the string this week at a 15-day spring meet with a brand of racing that would be the envy of most other places, including a nine-race Thursday card featuring three rich allowances.
All three co-features are part of a late pick five (races 5-9) that also includes two maiden-specials. Maximum purses for all five races are at least $100,000, including bonuses restricted to horses registered with the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund.
First post Thursday is 1 p.m. Eastern. Mostly sunny skies and a high of 62 are in the local forecast.
The meet ends Friday with a 10-race card anchored by the Grade 3 Bewitch. First post for closing day is 30 minutes earlier (12:30) in order to accommodate the horse sale that directly follows the card in the adjacent sales pavilion.
Here’s a quick look at the Thursday highlights:
Race 5: The first leg of the $3-minimum Turf Pick 3 (races 5-7-9) is a $110,000, first-level turf sprint that drew 10 3-year-olds and upward, with Wesley Ward a central figure in the outcome.
:: For the first time ever, our premium past performances are free! Get free Formulator now!
Ward not only sends out the uncoupled duo of Castle Leoch and American Starlet in the 5 1/2-furlong dash but also is the former trainer of Casanova Kitten, who returns with Saffie Joseph Jr. as his new conditioner.
Casanova Kitten owns easily the top Beyer Speed Figures in the lineup but is coming an 11-month layoff. Both of the Ward runners are 3-year-olds, with American Starlet the only filly in the group.
Race 7: An oversubscribed cast of 3-year-old fillies makes this $110,000 turf race a tricky handicapping chore, with the 1 3/16-mile distance being a variable that adds another layer of difficulty.
Pearl Earring, an also-ran in a Fair Grounds stakes in her last try, returns to an entry-level allowance condition as one of the likely favorites. The Godolphin homebred showed herself competitive at this level when finishing second in back-to-back January turf races at the New Orleans track.
Bravo Kitten, Shad Nation, Beside Herself, and Whenthedawnbreaks are among the chief opposition in what’s one of the deepest races of the day.
Race 8: Turf-to-dirt could prove a successful angle in this $130,000 main-track sprint for Skinny Dip, who stands to benefit in a big way from her return to action from a nearly seven-month layoff in the March 1 Mardi Gras Stakes over the Fair Grounds turf. Last spring and summer, Skinny Dip compiled a 3-for-4 streak, all on dirt, when stair-stepping through conditions for trainer Greg Foley.
Other contenders in this third-level race at 6 1/2 furlongs include Union Maiden, Music City Star, and the Ward-trained Red Ghost.