Ward hoping return to dirt is the key for Wonder Mist, double Pick 6 carryover of $138,225

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Wonder Mist won the first race of 2026 on this circuit for trainer Wesley Ward, but the 3-year-old gelding spent the remainder of the winter in Kentucky where he made just one start, a second-place finish over Turfway Park’s synthetic surface.

Friday, Wonder Mist is back in New York, and back on dirt, and Ward hopes that combination gets him back in the winner’s circle in a starter allowance/optional $75,000 claimer, the feature on an eight-race card. Friday’s card has a double Pick 6 carryover of $138,225 after the multi-race wager went unsolved for the second consecutive day on Thursday’s program.

Wonder Mist was a perfect-trip winner on New Year’s Day, sitting behind a trio of leaders before winning a stretch-long battle with Pretty Boy Miah. That horse came back to win a maiden race by 6 1/2 lengths on March 29 with a solid 89 Beyer Speed Figure. Laysen, fourth to Wonder Mist on New Year’s Day, came back to win his next two starts, albeit in the lower-level claiming ranks.

Tiger Rocket, one of two in here for Linda Rice, comes out of a fourth-place finish, beaten just 1 1/2 lengths by Igniter, in the Jimmy Winkfield Stakes on March 14. Rice also sends out Southeastern, who shortens up in distance after getting beat 9 3/4 lengths going a mile in this condition on March 27.

There does appear to be ample speed with The Toy Cannon, First Blessing, and Bonsai Warrior in the field.

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.