Vote No was freshened in the fall with an eye toward having him ready for a busy winter at Turfway Park. After kicking off his meet with a win in the Turfway Prevue on Jan. 6, he was prepared to wheel back quickly for his next challenge. But he got a little more time, as frigid weather in Kentucky forced his outing in the $125,000 Leonatus Stakes back about two weeks on the calendar, to where it is now the feature on Friday night’s program. The expected scratch of Awesome Road – whose connections plan to run in the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes on Saturday at Oaklawn Park – would leave Vote No as the shortest morning-line price in a group of seven 3-year-olds, in which he is the only stakes winner. The one-mile Leonatus, originally scheduled for Jan. 20, leads into Turfway’s Kentucky Derby points races on the Tapeta – the $150,000 John Battaglia Memorial (20-10-6-4-2) on March 2 and the Grade 3, $700,000 Jeff Ruby (100-50-25-15-10) on March 23. Vote No was making his first start in three months when he won the Prevue by 5 1/4 lengths, with a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 88. :: Bet the races with a $200 First Deposit Match + FREE All Access PPs! Join DRF Bets. “The horse is great,” trainer William Morey said. “This was the plan all along, to give him some time before Turfway so we could have him ready for a big Turfway meet.” Vote No had a productive 2-year-old campaign on turf and synthetic. A debut winner sprinting at Presque Isle Downs, he was up to win the Juvenile Sprint at Kentucky Downs over next-out winner Hedwig. That race was at 6 1/2 furlongs – but races at Kentucky Downs often feel longer due to the undulating course. Vote No then went two turns for the first time in the Grade 2 Bourbon Stakes on Oct. 8 on the Keeneland turf. He was beaten a total of a length in the 1 1/16-mile contest by Can Group, who subsequently finished fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, and Noted, who has since won a stakes at Gulfstream. “I’m excited to see him at a mile again,” Morey said of the gelding, who is from the first crop of Grade 1-winning turf router Divisidero. “I think he’ll like it.” Vote No, with regular rider Gerardo Corrales in the irons, likes to sit in the second flight or farther back, and come with a solid drive. Epic Ride, breaking to his inside under Adam Beschizza, should show the way early, and his speed figures stack up well if he can stretch out. The colt, trained by John Ennis, had an awkward start when second in his debut going six furlongs in December at Turfway, then scored a front-running, five-length victory at the same trip in January, with an 86 Beyer. Salvattore Prince, in from Florida for Jose D’Angelo, has the advantage of two solid performances going a mile and 70 yards on Gulfstream’s Tapeta – showing some versatility in the process. The colt controlled the tempo in a slower race to win his maiden in November. The next month, he stepped up to allowance/optional-claiming company, sitting off a hotter pace before rallying to the win, posting an 85 Beyer. Tyler Conner will be aboard. Blue Eyes George, Good Bali, and Mugatu have all won only at the maiden or allowance level, but have all won at a mile or slightly longer on turf or synthetic surfaces. Rounding out the field is Bettering, a maiden winner at Belterra and a claiming winner at Churchill Downs, both in dirt sprints. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.