Trainer Todd Pletcher has run away with this summer's Saratoga meet title and fields a team of four 2-year-old fillies in Sunday's $250,000 Spinaway Stakes (G1), two of them eligible for the $375,000 My Dear Girl Division finale of the Florida Stallion Stakes series on Festival of the Sun day at Calder Casino & Race Course on Sat., Oct. 16.
E. Paul Robsham Stable's homebred R Heat Lightning is a daughter of Trippi that won her career debut by five lengths on July 5 at Delaware Park and finished a game second in the $100,000 Colleen Stakes at Monmouth Park last out on Aug. 7.
Repole Stable's Stopspendingmaria is a daughter of of Montbrook purchased for $90,000 at the OBS February 2-year-old sales and has made three starts, finishing third in her debut at Monmouth Park, breaking her maiden by seven lengths at Belmont Park on July 1 and finishing second last out in the Schuylerville Stakes (G2) at Saratoga on July 23.
Another accomplished filly eligible for the My Dear Girl in action this holiday weekend will be among the favorites in today's $250,000 Darley Debutante Stakes (G1) at Del Mar as trainer Doug O'Neill sends out STD Stable and partners' Wickedly Perfect to bid for a third straight victory following a maiden score at Hollywood Park and victory in the $150,000 Sorrento Stakes (G3).
The My Dear Girl at 1 1/16 miles will be run three weeks before the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) at Churchill Downs on Fri., Nov. 5 and is expected to feature a pair of accomplished Calder-developed fillies in Jacks or Better Farm's undefeated Awesome Feather and Gilbert Campbell's Blue Eyed Sweetie.
Awesome Feather is a homebred daughter of Awesome of Course trained by Stanley Gold and will bid to become the third filly in the 29-year history of the Stallion Stakes series to sweep the three filly divisions after winning the $75,000 Desert Vixen on Aug. 7 by 4 ¾ lengths and the $100,000 Susan's Girl on Aug. 28 by four lengths on Juvenile Showcase day last Saturday.
Blue Eyed Sweetie is a homebred by West Acre trained by Kathleen O'Connell that finished second behind Awesome of Course in the Desert Vixen but opted to run in the $100,000 Lindsay Frolic Stakes going one mile around two turns on last Saturday's Juvenile Showcase program drawing off to win by 6 ¼ lengths.
Dwoskin & Saez Continue to Lead Calder Meet Standings
Trainer Steve Dwoskin sent out one winner on Friday's 11-race card at Calder Casino & Race Course to maintain a lead of six in the standings over closest rival Bill White at 26-20 after more than four months of the session. White saddled two winners on Friday as he bids to defend his 2009 Calder Meet title and has won the championship a record 11 seasons overall.
With the Calder Meet running through Oct. 17 before the Tropical Meet from Oct. 21 - Jan. 3, several other horsemen remain within striking distance close behind Dwoskin and White with David Fawkes and Fred Warren tied for third at 19 apiece, followed by Eddie Plesa, Jr., Chris Gatis and Antonio Sano one more back at 18 each. Sano also sent out two winners on Friday's card.
Jockey Luis Saez, 18, and 40-year-old veteran rival Manoel Cruz kept pace with each other at one-two in the standings riding one winner apiece on Friday as Saez leads by two at 104-102 in a race that appears likely to continue on a day-to-day basis. Cruz is the defending Calder Meet champion after previously taking the trophy in 2003 and 2006. Apprentice Angel Moreno ranks a distant third with 53 tallies.
Flatter This & Tripoflifetime Clash in Monday Holiday Feature
Blackacre Farm's 3-year-old Flatter This and Trilogy Stable's 4-year-old Tripofalifetime each won ‘a other than' allowance features forced off turf and run on the main track last out at Calder Casino & Race Course and look like the horses to beat in Monday's Labor Day holiday program feature.
Jockey Eduardo Nunez gets the return call on Flatter This for trainer Kathleen O'Connell and Luis Jurado gets back aboard Tripofalifetime for trainer Eddie Plesa, Jr. in the ‘two other than' optional/allowance test scheduled for the main track with a field of six drawn.
Flatter This rallied from last of seven to score by 2 ¾ lengths going one mile on a track rated ‘good' on July 24 after finishing third in the Donthelumbertrader overnight stakes on July 5, another race scheduled for turf but run on the main track. The chestnut son of Flatter ran another good race over the track in early May when third in the Ride the Rails overnight behind Bernie the Maestro and Coffee Boy.
Tripofalifetime went wire-to-wire to score by four lengths last out on Aug. 8 over a ‘sloppy' track for his fourth career victory in 16 starts while finishing second on four other occasions. The son of Trippi was making only his second appearance this year after finishing an even fourth going seven furlongs on July 15 in his first outing since winning for a $25,000 claiming tag here on Dec. 19 with no takers.
Completing the field for Monday's feature are Lewis Pell and Michael Eigner's Imawildandcrazyguy, Manoel Cruz; Paul Giacopelli and Carolyn Sanders' Medaglia d'Onore, Jocelyn Kenny; Faiz Khan International's Lunar Fleet, Javier Santiago; and Monarch Stable's Concorde's Fury, Luis Saez.