Violette again well armed for Consignors Futurity

OCEANPORT, N.J. – Trainer Rick Violette Jr. has had considerable success in the National Association of Two-Year-Old Consignors Futurity in the brief history of the stakes that began in 2002.

Violette won in 2005 with What’s Your Edge and in 2007 with the filly Phantom Income. He is back for more on Sunday at Monmouth Park.

Violette has a solid contender, and the likely favorite, in each of the six-furlong $200,000 divisions for horses who have been cataloged in 2010 with a paid 2010 advertising-fund fee.

Both Overseas Market and Bail Out the Cat were bought in February by Klaravich Stable and William H. Lawrence.

The filly division is first up, the fifth of 12 races on the card. Overseas Market has the rail for her third start.

A $220,000 purchase at the Fasig Tipton sale, Overseas Market debuted at Monmouth in June, gamely pressing the pace every step to miss by only a neck.

After that race, Overseas Market underwent a myectomy to correct a breathing problem. She returned at Saratoga on Sept. 3 and got her maiden win on a disqualification when she was forced to steady in deep stretch.

“Her comeback race at Saratoga was very good,” Violette said. “She ran a little greenly, getting dirt in her face for the first time, and she kind of backed out of there a couple of times. And then it was an eventful run to the wire. You would rather win on the up and up, but we’ll take it and hopefully move on to bigger and better things.”

The main competition figures to come from Unbridled Praise, who overcame a stumble at the start to win Monmouth’s Sorority Stakes on Labor Day.

Trainer Ronny Werner has entered a pair who will race uncoupled: Sound Wave and Lady Malkin.

Bail Out the Cat appears to hold a substantial class edge in the colt-and-gelding division. He ran in a pair of Grade 2 stakes at Saratoga, finishing second most recently to Kantharos in the Saratoga Special.

“He was second to what might be the best 2-year-old in the country, who unfortunately got hurt,” Violette said. “He held very, very well to get second on that day. Outside or inside, he’s a very live horse on Sunday.”

In this case, Bail Out the Cat has the outside slot in the eight-horse field. A $150,000 buy at the Ocala Breeders’ Sale Co. sale, he won his debut at Belmont Park in June. Off that win, he was the 19-10 favorite in the Sanford at Saratoga, a race that was lost before it started when Bail Out the Cat got riled in the gate and broke poorly.

“It was bad luck that second start,” Violette said. “There was a little bit of a wait in the gate and he kind of blew up just as they sprung the latch. Basically, he was eliminated. Other than that, he’s been a pretty good soldier.”

Alan Garcia will ride both Violette runners.

Trainer Eddie Plesa Jr. will try to beat Bail Out the Cat with Value Added Tax, a former Klaravich-Lawrence runner.

Plesa claimed the colt from a maiden race for $40,000 here in late July. Value Added Tax ran once since then, missing by only three-quarters of length in a maiden special weight.