Weather looms over Churchill turf-sprint allowances
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Oversubscribed fields of fillies and mares are entered in both allowances on an eight-race twilight card Thursday at Churchill Downs, but hold that thought. An elevated chance of rain was in the forecast every day from Sunday into the coming weekend, so handicappers might well have to adjust their calculations, depending on which surface those co-features will be run.
Both are intended as 5 1/2-furlong turf races. Race 3 is a $104,000 second-level allowance race, while the race 8 finale is a $102,000 first-level allowance. Prevailing course conditions will dictate whether they remain on the grass, as the outlook for both races will be affected greatly depending on surface.
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On turf, race 3 would have Lady Luxury as a major contender for the red-hot Chris Hartman if she draws in off the also-eligibles list, given the Florida-bred mare just won May 15 for this same condition and remains eligible by being entered here for an optional $62,500 tag. The respective 2-3-4 finishers in that key race nearly a month ago – Sara Sea, Violenza, and Dance Rhythms – also merit high consideration under those circumstances.
Hartman upped his record at the meet to a remarkable 11 for 25 in winning six races here last week, moving him into second place behind Brad Cox’s leading total of 15 wins atop the local trainer standings. “Good times,” said Hartman, a mainstay of the Kentucky circuit since 2015.
If moved to the main track, however, race 3 could assume a far different look, with Purrfectly Claire, making her first start in nearly eight months, among those having a much-improved chance.
Race 8 would have Never Forget among its favorites if it stays on turf, even with her 13-1-4-2 record suggesting a reluctance to win. But if it goes on dirt, then Mischiefful, who has never raced on turf, would stand an excellent chance to redeem as a beaten odds-on favorite in her last start here May 20. The Sierra Farm homebred narrowly missed at this same level in April at Keeneland and could have a couple of main track-only designates, Fouette and Altered Shot, as her chief opposition.
Purses for non-claiming/starter races at Churchill include sizable bonuses restricted to horses eligible to the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund. As an example, bonuses total $39,200 for race 3 and $38,200 for race 8.
Twilight first post is 5 p.m. Eastern. The card kicks off a four-day week highlighted by the final nighttime program of the spring meet on Saturday, with the Grade 3 Mint Julep going as the feature under the lights.