Virginia flavor to Laurel's Saturday card

Saturday will be Round 2 of the Virginia-bred or -sired turf series at Laurel Park. Four $75,000 stakes for 3-year-olds and up are on the agenda – two at 5 1/2 furlongs and two at 1 1/16 miles.

The first leg of the series was held June 23. It will continue Sept. 22, when five stakes for Virginia-registered runners will be held.

Virginia owners and breeders have been homeless since Colonial Downs closed in 2014. It is possible these races will return there next season as efforts are underway to reopen the facility, which has been sold and given permission to operate slot-machine-like devices.

The Laurel, Md., weather forecast calls for showers and thunderstorms Thursday and Friday. The track was off the turf Thursday.

Saturday’s 1 1/16-mile races offer clear-cut matchups. The sprints – one for either sex and another for fillies and mares – are decidedly tougher.

Special Envoy will be aiming for a repeat in the 1 1/16-mile Hansel for owners-breeders Bertram and Diana Firestone and trainer Arnaud Delacour. The son of Stroll finished second to the classy Sticksstatelydude at 2-1 while making his 7-year-old debut in the one-mile Edward Evans on June 23.

Special Envoy should be tighter with that race under his belt, and Sticksstatelydude is not in the Hansel. Jockey Daniel Centeno stays aboard.

Speed Gracer, who finished a neck behind Special Envoy in the Evans at 9-1, also is a contender for trainer Susan Cooney.

River Deep is cross-entered in the Hansel and 5 1/2-furlong Meadow Stable. Trainer Phil Schoenthal said he was leaning toward the Hansel, but wanted to check track conditions and scratches.

The William M. Backer, the female version of the Hansel, will pit the familiar rivals Armoire and Queen Caroline against each other for the fifth time. The score coming into the Backer is 2 to 2.

Both Armoire, who is trained by Delacour, and Queen Caroline, who is conditioned by Michael Matz, made their seasonal debuts in the one-mile Nellie Mae Cox on June 23. Armoire won the race by 1 1/2 lengths, with Queen Caroline checking in third. A year ago, Queen Caroline won the Cox by 1 1/4 lengths over runner-up Armoire.

There isn’t a whole lot separating the two, but Queen Caroline has a bit more speed than Armoire. In the Cox, Armoire was the 11-10 favorite and Queen Caroline was the 8-5 second choice.

Sweet Sandy, who upset the top two in last year’s Backer at 13-1, is also in the field.

Seven of the eight entrants in the Meadow Stable met on June 23 in the White Oak Farm.

Determined Vision posted an 11-1 upset in the 5 1/2-furlong White Oak Farm over 9-1 Available. Lime House Louie finished third at 6-1.

Determined Vision was a deserving White Oak Farm winner and is the horse to beat Saturday. He went to the lead and then held off Available through the stretch to win by a half-length. Available raced in tight quarters along the inside that day and had to wait for room in upper stretch.

Late-running Lime House Louie nailed 7-5 favorite Fly E Dubai for third by a head.

Fly E Dubai was steadied on the far turn when attempting to bear out, had dead aim in the stretch, but lacked the needed closing kick. He has since come back to finish second in a $16,000 starter race.

The 5 1/2-furlong Camptown has attracted eight fillies and mares, including seven who met in the June 23 M. Tyson Gilpin Stakes. Well Blessed, who last started in the one-mile Cox, is cross-entered in the Backer and the Camptown, but is likely to run in the shorter Camptown.

Altamura, a 3-year-old, closed from sixth to upset the Gilpin by a head over the front-running Virginia Fable, who was 23-1. It was a neck farther back to 7-1 Up Hill Battle and another neck back to Sister Says in fourth.

Altamura, who is 2 for 4, sold on July 9 for $205,000 at the Fasig-Tipton summer selected horses of racing age sale to Susan Moulton and is now in the stable of trainer Wayne Catalano.

Northern Eclipse, who was 7-2 in the Gilpin, finished sixth, beaten 2 1/2 lengths, while making her first start in seven months. It would not be a surprise to see her rebound Saturday.

The turnback in distance may prove beneficial for Well Blessed, who tired to finish seventh in the Cox.