Village Warrior can go long, but will he like turf?
A rainy autumn followed by some unseasonably cold weather has kept turf racing to a minimum in New York recently, and as a result, the majority of horses in Sunday’s $67,000 allowance at Aqueduct are coming off layoffs.
In fact, seven of the 10 horses in the main body of race 7 have been idle for seven weeks or more, which lends an air of uncertainty to the race, scheduled for 1 3/8 miles around three turns of the Big A turf course.
Further complicating matters is Village Warrior, who will be in front as far as he goes for Repole Stable and Todd Pletcher.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 9 Village Warrior. Trainer Todd Pletcher is 22-0-2-4 over the past two years with horses trying turf for the first time following a layoff of 45 days or more. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
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The distance is not an issue for Village Warrior, who came to hand with a pair of front-running victories totaling 19 furlongs at Saratoga before leading to deep stretch of the 1 5/8-mile Temperence Hill Invitational at Belmont on Oct. 4. The issue is turf, and although Village Warrior, a grandson of A.P. Indy, has an uninspiringly low Tomlinson turf rating (243), it is noteworthy that the same connections also put Micromanage on grass for the first time recently, and he led to the final strides of the Bowl Game Stakes before coming up on the short end of a three-way photo.
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Make a Decision has come up short in six tries at this level, but the New York-bred missed by a nose against the hard-hitting Grand Rapport when last seen Sept. 27. He has a history of running well fresh, including a maiden win at Aqueduct with nearly two months between starts, and a second to Travers winner V. E. Day off a 53-day break earlier this season.
Chad Brown sends out the uncoupled Dynaformer colts Innovation Economy and Request, who finished a half-length apart when off the board at Saratoga on Aug. 16. Each looks for his first win since a debut victory last fall.
Are We Not Men and Social Affair step up in class. Are We Not Men won over the course on Oct. 30 in a starter allowance, and Social Affair beat maiden special weight foes over the turf here.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 6 Social Affair. Trainer Shug McGaughey is 54-16-10-7 with a $3.14 ROI over the past two years in turf routes of 10 furlongs and longer. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
Race 7
KEY CONTENDERS
Make a Decision (Last 3 Beyers: 87-79-83)
◗ He comes off a career-top Beyer, which came going 1 1/2 miles, but seeks his first win since back-to-back allowance wins over New York-breds in October 2013.
Request (Last 3 Beyers: 83-78-83)
◗ Trainer Chad Brown is 3 for 9 ($3.04 return on investment) with blinkers off the past two seasons.
◗He is one of three in the race sired by Dynaformer, along with stablemate Innovation Economy and Fair Hill invader Crown Thy Good.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 7 Innovation Economy and No. 10 Request. Trainer Chad Brown is 11-4-2-1 with a $3.82 ROI over the past two years in turf routes of 10 furlongs and longer following a layoff of 45 days or more. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan