Hot Currency takes another swing at NYSSS in Fourstar Crook division

Winning Move Stable, Sanford Robbins, Lady Sheila Stable, Silverwood Stables and IEE Racing’s Hot Currency has already placed in a New York Stallion Stakes Series event, and will look to come out on top in Saturday’s $200,000 Fourstar Crook division, a 6 1/2-furlong sprint for eligible New York-sired sophomore fillies, at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Hot Currency, trained by recent Aqueduct winter meet-leader Linda Rice, has hit the board in 4-of-5 career starts, topped by a 6 1/2-length stalk-and-pounce graduation at third asking in November over course and distance.

She followed that effort with a prominent second to Braverthanubelieve in the seven-furlong $500,000 NYSSS Fifth Avenue on December 6, pressing Fancy Lights through splits of 22.56 second and 45.71 over the fast footing before being met with the challenge from Braverthanubelieve. She was outfinished and landed 1 1/4 lengths back to earn a 75 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort, one point lower than her maiden win.

Hot Currency enters from a pacesetting second in a local state-bred optional claimer sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs on January 10, where she battled on determinedly along the rail before coming up three-quarter-lengths shy of the victorious Pinky Brier.

Rice said she had the Fifth Avenue circled on the calendar ever since Hot Currency ran second on debut in an off-the-turf sprint in August at Saratoga Race Course. 

“We were pointing towards that race since August when we ran her at Saratoga, and she was about 85 percent ready [to debut], but I wanted to get a race into her,” Rice said. “She finished second and ran well there and then her next start was a little flat, but then she started moving forward, so we’ve been pretty pleased with her.”

The daughter of Central Banker made her first two starts without blinkers, and has raced with them on since her graduation. Rice said the blinkers have helped the filly take a step forward.

“She’s more focused and less intimidated,” Rice said. “We’ll see how this next race goes.”

Bred in New York by BHMFR, Hot Currency was a $200,000 purchase at the OBS Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training and is out of the winning Spring At Last mare Calidez.

“I’ve been really happy with her and she’s come a long ways,” Rice said. “She’s made nice progress and I think she’s a nice filly.”

Manny Franco has the call from post 5.

Peter Kazamias’ New York homebred Greek Goddess [post 3, Jaime Rodriguez] impressed in her February 6 debut over course and distance when overcoming a slow and bumpy beginning to pounce from 4th-of-9 and edge clear to win a state-bred maiden special weight by 1 3/4 lengths under returning rider Jaime Rodriguez. The effort was awarded a 69 Beyer.

Trained by Dimitrios Synnefias, the Name Changer dark bay has worked back three times since her victory, including a half-mile bullet in 47.11 seconds on March 11 over the Belmont Park training track.

Greek Goddess is out of the dual stakes-winning Bank Heist mare Behrnik’s Bank, whose dam is the stakes-placed Chimes Band mare Behrnik. All three horses were owned by Kazamias, with Greek Goddess and her dam being New York homebreds.

Irikan’s New York homebred Irish Fortune [post 8, Ricardo Santana, Jr.] looks to rebound from a distant fourth in the aforementioned January 10 sprint won by Pinky Brier.

Trained by Tom Morley, the Central Banker filly was a surprise winner on debut, upsetting a state-bred maiden over course and distance at odds of 19-1 in December with a wire-to-wire trip under Jaime Rodriguez. The effort was awarded a 59 Beyer. Her trip next out was from off the pace, and she came up empty when asked for her best in the turn. 

The popular filly Miss Jane Hathaway [post 1, Reylu Gutierrez] turned heads while training at Saratoga Race Course last summer, and made a successful debut on March 12 sprinting six furlongs here over muddy and sealed footing. The Central Banker gray quickly became a fan favorite due to her short ears, which are the result of frostbite when she was a foal.

Miss Jane Hathaway’s victory was part of a hot streak enjoyed by trainer Jimmy Ferraro in mid-February and early March when posting five wins, a second and a third from seven starts in four weeks. The wire-to-wire victory against state-bred elders garnered a 56 Beyer, and came as one of only two sophomores in the field of six.

Miss Jane Hathaway returned to the work tab on Friday at Belmont, covering a half-mile solo in 50.85 seconds.

“She’s doing good,” Ferraro said. “The work was OK, she went by herself. Her race was pretty impressive, beating older.”

A New York homebred for owner James Corrao, Miss Jane Hathaway is out of the winning Cosmonaut mare Flippity Flop, a half-sister to graded stakes-placed multiple stakes-winner Fire Key and stakes-placed Locke and Key.

Completing the field are maiden winners Power of Women [post 4, Kendrick Carmouche] for trainer Rick Dutrow, Jr. and Clap Back [post 2, Dylan Davis] for trainer Peter Miller, as well as trainer Charlie Baker’s New York homebred maiden Rock Steady Babe [post 6, Jorge Vargas, Jr.] and the Ralph D’Alessandro-trained Hip Hop Dancer [post 7, Dalila Rivera].

The Fourstar Crook [previously run as the Park Avenue] is slated as Race 7 on Saturday’s eight-race card, which co-features the $200,000 NYSSS Mind Your Biscuits [previously the Times Square] in Race 6. First post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern.

The re-named stakes honor two of the highest earning state-sired horses of each sex, with Mind Your Biscuits banking in excess of $4.2 million and Fourstar Crook earning over $1.6 million.

The Fourstar Crook is named after the New York-bred Freud bay trained by Chad Brown who won 12-of-20 career starts, including the 2018 Grade 1 Flower Bowl Invitational at Belmont Park. The late-running mare captured that year’s Grade 2 New York there, Grade 2 Hillsborough at Tampa Bay Downs and the 2017 Grade 3 Dr. James Penny Memorial at Parx Racing. She proved her mettle in the highest levels of open-company in a career that also included four New York-bred stakes wins for fillies and mares.

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