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Call Me Harry makes stakes debut in $100K English Channel

by Ryan Martin

Newtown Anner Stud's Call Me Harry, unblemished in two career starts, will take things up a notch when trying stakes company for the first time in Saturday's $100,000 English Channel over the Widener turf course at Belmont Park.

The one mile event for 3-year-olds is one of three stakes carded for the Belmont fall meet's penultimate day of racing and is named in honor of James Scatuorchio's 2007 Champion Turf Male who won six Grade 1 races including back-to-back Joe Hirsch Turf Classic victories.

Trained by Kelsey Danner, Call Me Harry broke his maiden over the lawn at Saratoga going 5 ½ furlongs at 15-1 odds before defeating winners at the Spa in a first level allowance event at the same distance.

"We want to stretch him out in distance and this seemed like a good time to do it," Danner said. "It's also one of the last chances to run against straight 3-year-olds as well. Obviously, he liked the shorter distances at first. He won first out and came back and did the same thing. With him being by Street Sense, he's bred to go longer. He's been breezing well at Belmont in the mornings so hopefully he likes it in the afternoon."

Call Me Harry recently went six furlongs in 1:13.45 over Belmont's inner turf on October 20.

A victory on Saturday would give Danner, a former assistant to veteran conditioner Wayne Catalano, her first stakes win as a trainer.

Call Me Harry will break from post 3 under jockey Manny Franco.

Meet-leading trainer Chad Brown will look to saddle his 11th stakes victor of the fall meet when he sends out Front Run the Fed, who seeks his fourth straight win.

Owned by Klaravich Stables, the son of second-crop sire Fed Biz arrives at the English Channel off a triumph in the Better Talk Now on August 25 at Saratoga. Since that win, which was his stakes debut, he has remained with Brown's string at Saratoga and recently worked a half-mile in 49.31 seconds over the Oklahoma training track on October 19.

Prior to his last out victory, he broke his maiden at fourth asking on April 14 at Aqueduct before defeating winners at Belmont one month later.

A victory in the English Channel would give the trainer-owner combo their fourth stakes victory together this meet. Jockey Jose Lezcano piloted Front Run the Fed to victory last time out and will be reunited with the colt when he leaves from post 6.

Lake Star Stable and Bourbon Lane Stable's Bourbon War will attempt to end an 0-for-6 slump against stakes company when breaking from post 8 for trainer Mark Hennig.

The well-bred son of Tapit was a contender in two of the three American Classics having participated in the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes (eighth) and Grade 1 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets (10th). He made his turf debut when finishing second to Front Run the Fed in the Better Talk Now two starts back, where he garnered a career-best 97 Beyer Speed Figure.

Already a stakes winner, Juddmonte Farms' Seismic Wave will seek another stakes triumph on grass when breaking from post 4 for Hall of Famer Bill Mott.

The chestnut son of Tapit won his stakes debut in the Cutler Bay on March 30 at Gulfstream Park before a string of graded stakes efforts, including a fifth in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational as the lukewarm favorite.

Completing the field are Power Player [post 1, Javier Castellano], Chilly in Charge [post 2, Joe Bravo], Digital Footprint [post 5, Irad Ortiz, Jr.] and Halladay [post 7, John Velazquez].

The English Channel is slated as Race 5 on Saturday's 10-race card, which also includes the Grade 3, $200,000 Bold Ruler in Race 8 and $100,000 Awad in Race 9. First post is 12:45 p.m. Eastern.