New York-bred Sweet Montreal steps up for $150K Stewart Manor

DiRico Racing and Breeding’s New York-bred stakes winner Sweet Montreal will step into open company for the first time in Friday’s $150,000 Stewart Manor, a six-furlong outer turf sprint for 2-year-old fillies, Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Jim Ryerson, Sweet Montreal [post 3, Christopher Elliott] was purchased for $120,000 at the OBS March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training where she worked in 10 seconds flat. She paid immediate dividends with a prominent 42-1 upset score on debut sprinting 5 1/2-furlongs on August 6 at Saratoga Race Course.

The Instagrand grey followed with a frontrunning romp in the six-furlong Joseph A. Gimma on September 19 here, powering away to a 3 1/4-length score in a final time of 1:08.73 to earn a co-field best 76 Beyer Speed Figure – a 19 point improvement on her debut.

"The filly has gotten stronger. She's filled out a little bit and put on some weight, which she needed to do," Ryerson said. "We're eagerly awaiting Friday's event. Hopefully, she makes a good account of herself."

Ryerson said Sweet Montreal was overlooked on debut after working multiple times with recent maiden winner Cosmic Candy Girl, who is pointing to the $125,000 Key Cents on November 13 here – a one-mile route for state-bred juvenile fillies.

“It was interesting...she paid $87 first time out because she worked a lot with another filly that ended up being a route type filly,” Ryerson said. “She was easy to throttle down and the works weren't that impressive, and she paid a big price, but she's [Sweet Montreal] much quicker than that. She has a great mind, and she has the ability, I think, to rate."

Sweet Montreal will again be piloted by Christopher Elliott, whose nine wins at the meet heading into Saturday’s action see him in tenth place in the jockey standings.

"Christopher stepped on her the first time and he's been working her since," Ryerson said. "He has a great feel for her, and he certainly hasn't done anything wrong yet, so we're happy to have him."

Sweet Montreal, bred by Torie D. Gladwell, is a half-sister to dual stakes-placed Sohana. She is out of the Rockport Harbor mare Passeporta – a half-sister to Nike Ahead, who banked more than $1.4 million [64-7-10-1] in Japan.

Icon Racing Stable’s Yaudacity [post 5, Ben Curtis] will look to graduate in style out of a narrow neck defeat in her October 11 debut at Keeneland. There, the Whit Beckman trainee exited the outermost post 11 under Flavien Prat and rallied from tenth position and 9 1/2-lengths off the pace to finish a neck second to returning rival Map of the Moon, who stopped the clock for 5 1/2-furlongs over good turf in 1:03.17.

Beckman said the added distance would benefit the Yaupon dark bay, who worked back a half-mile in 49 flat October 27 over the Churchill Downs main track.

"She's still a maiden, but she ran a maiden breaking race from the outside post,” Beckman said. “I think this would be a better spot than Churchill because they don't offer any maidens going 5 1/2-furlongs on turf in the book at this point.

“She is a nice filly,” Beckman added. “I think she'll be well-spotted here." 

The $190,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase, a half-sister to stakes-placed Wilson Q, is out of the Speightstown mare Margate Gardens – a full-sister to dual Grade 3-winner Bridgetown and a half-sister to Grade 3-placed Carnacks Choice and multiple stakes-winner Clement Rock.

Lael Stables Kentucky-homebred Should’ve [post 1, Joel Rosario] will look to make amends for a troubled third last out in the local Grade 3 Matron on October 2. There, the Wesley Ward trainee stumbled at the break before making an inside rush to the front to show the way through splits of 22.14 seconds and 44.60 over the firm turf en route to a one-length third to the victorious Final Accord, who ran ninth in Friday’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. The Matron runner-up, Royal Testament, landed 11th in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint versus males.

Should’ve entered the Matron from a frontrunning debut graduation in a 6 1/2-furlong sprint on August 28 at Kentucky Downs. The third-place finisher of that event, Getting Serious, graduated next out here and is entered in Thursday’s Listed Chelsey Flower.

The Not This Time dark bay, a half-sister to multiple stakes-winner Daring Do, is out of the winning Blame mare More’n Likely – a half-sister to the Ward-trained 2014 Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf-winner Hootenanny and Grade 3-placed Ryder Ryder Ryder.

The Estate of R. Larry Johnson’s Virginia-homebred Hark Theangelssing [post 10, Kendrick Carmouche] ships in from a rallying 1 1/2-length optional-claiming win on October 3 at her Laurel Park base.

Trained by Michael Trombetta, the Mendelssohn grey graduated on debut in July at Colonial Downs in a five-furlong turf sprint and followed with a troubled fourth in the restricted Dolley Madison there on August 23.

Hark Theangelssing redeemed that effort last out with a last-to-first score under Ismerio Villalobos, closing from seventh and 8 1/2-lengths off the pace to score a stylish win while covering 5 1/2-furlongs in 1:02.58. The winning effort earned a 75 Beyer.

She is out of the winning The Factor mare Questionoftheday, a half-sister to stakes winners A Lover’s Question and Harbingerofthings and the stakes-placed Mr. Magician.

Black Type Thoroughbreds, Swinbank Stables, Steve Adkisson and Scott Rice’s Believe in Magic [post 11, Ricardo Santana, Jr.] cuts back in distance from a 3 1/4-length fifth in the local 1 1/16-mile Grade 2 Miss Grillo on October 4.

Trained by William Morey, the Not This Time dark bay graduated at second asking in an off-the-turf sprint over muddy and sealed footing on July 31 at Saratoga. She followed with a pace-pressing 1 1/2-length third to the victorious Quiet Street in the lucrative Untapable traveling 6 1/2-furlongs on September 7 at Kentucky Downs.

Last out, Believe in Magic bobbled at the start and tracked pacesetting eventual winner Ground Support before fading to fifth. Ground Support subsequently won the Grade 2 Miss Grillo here and ran a strong third in Friday’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Del Mar.

Believe in Magic, a $50,000 purchase from the 2023 Fasig-Tipton December Digital Selected Sale, is out of the stakes-placed Power Broker mare Showmethemagic. Her second dam, Magic Charm, is a half-sister to dual stakes-winner Call Her Magic.

Zuby [post 6, Eric Cancel], racing with a $75,000 tag, edged clear to a 3 1/4-length score in an off-the-turf maiden optional-claimer contested over muddy and sealed footing on September 25 here.

Trained and co-owned by George Weaver with John Cronin, Jr., RAP Racing and Richard A. Watson, the Vekoma dark bay, a $75,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase, made a three-wide move turning for home and took command inside the final sixteenth for the smart win.

Bred in Kentucky by Ballyfair Farm, Zuby is out of the Violence mare I Love Shopping – a half-sister to dual graded stakes-winning turf sprinter Imprimis.

An overflow field includes a talented selection of maiden winners, including Beach Heist [post 4, Nik Juarez] and Silicium [post AE13, Junior Alvarado] for trainer Will Walden; the aforementioned Map of the Moon [post 2, Axel Concepcion] for conditioner Kelsey Danner; Catalonia [post 12, Javier Castellano], who was a last-out fourth here in the Grade 3 Matron for trainer Jose D’Angelo; the Joe Sharp-trained Lit Ship [post 8, Manny Franco], who enters from a pacesetting fifth in the Grade 2 Jessamine; Cadenza [post 9, Flavien Prat] for dual Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox; and Velcamp [post 7, Katie Davis] for dual Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse.

The Stewart Manor is slated as Race 9 on Friday’s 10-race card which also features the Listed $150,000 Central Park in Race 7. First post is 11:40 a.m. Eastern.

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