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​New York-breds set to shine on annual Big Apple Showcase Day

by NYRA Press Office

A total of 88 horses are entered for Holiday Monday’s special 10-race all New York-bred card at Belmont Park to celebrate the best of New York racing, featuring five stakes for the annual Big Apple Showcase Day.

"Big Apple Showcase Day on the Memorial Day holiday at Belmont Park shows the strength and value New York's breeding industry has on racing in our state and beyond," said Najja Thompson, Executive Director of New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. "Working in partnership with NYRA, we have created a tradition featuring marquee New York-bred days, showing why it's lucrative to breed, own and race state-breds in New York."

Hidden Brook Farm, Joseph G. McMahon and Anne McMahon's Bank Sting, a 5-year-old Central Banker bay will look to defend her title in the featured $200,000 Critical Eye [Race 6], a one-turn mile handicap for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up. 

Trained by John Terranova, Bank Sting launched her current campaign with a pair of narrow neck wins at Aqueduct Racetrack, capturing the seven-furlong La Verdad against fellow state-breds in January ahead of a hard-fought score in the one-turn mile Heavenly Prize Invitational in March against open company. She enters from a distant fourth in the Grade 2 Ruffian on May 8 at Belmont. 

Bank Sting, assigned a field-high 124 pounds, will exit post 4 under Joel Rosario.

Steep opposition will be provided by Gary Barber's multiple graded stakes placed Make Mischief [post 7,122 pounds, Dylan Davis] for Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse. The 4-year-old Into Mischief bay, bred by Avanti Stable, enjoyed a lucrative 2021 campaign, posting a record of 10-3-1-3, including a score in the state-bred Maddie May last February at Aqueduct, as well as graded placings when third in both the Grade 2 Eight Belles at Churchill Downs and the Grade 1 Acorn at Belmont. 

A talented field includes multiple stakes winners Maiden Beauty [post 2, 122 pounds, Kendrick Carmouche] and Laobanonaprayer [post 6, 118 pounds, Luis Rodriguez Castro]; stakes winner Secret Love [post 1, 119 pounds, John Velazquez]; as well as Mashnee Girl [post 5, 118 pounds, Luis Saez], and Love and Love [post 3, 120 pounds, Trevor McCarthy].

The stakes action kicks off in Race 2 with the $125,000 Mount Vernon for fillies and mares 4-years-old and upward travelling one mile over the Widener turf. Christophe Clement will saddle two-time stakes winner Classic Lady [post 6, Joel Rosario] and the consistent She’s the One [post 3, Trevor McCarthy].

Michael Dubb and Michael J. Caruso’s Classic Lady, bred by Seth Gregory and Robert Barney, will make her seasonal debut after finishing tenth in the Grade 3 Suwannee River in December at Gulfstream Park in her graded stakes debut. A close second in the 2020 Mount Vernon, the veteran Jimmy Creed mare captured that year’s Dayatthespa at Saratoga and the 2021 Ticonderoga two starts back. 

Merrylegs Farm homebred She’s the One has never been worse than second in five lifetime starts, winning three times and finishing a head shy of victory in her other two outings. The 4-year-old Macho Uno filly enters off two straight wins, including a last out allowance triumph on April 23 at Aqueduct in her first start off a four-month layoff. 

Steep opposition will be provided by Lawrence Goichman homebred Runaway Rumour [post 1, Jose Lezcano], a multiple graded stakes placed daughter of Flintshire, who will face state-breds for the first time since last June for trainer Jorge Abreu. She captured last year’s Wild Applause at Belmont before earning graded black type when second in the Lake Placid at Saratoga and the Sands Point at Belmont, both Grade 2 events. 

Rounding out the field are Bond Racing Stable’s stakes-winning Giacosa [post 2, Luis Saez], three-time winner Silky Blue [post 4, Manny Franco] and two-time winner Pop the Bubbly [post 5, Kendrick Carmouche]. 

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott will send out Dream Maker Racing’s three-time stakes winner Yo Cuz [post 2, Jose Ortiz] in the $125,000 Bouwerie, a seven-furlong sprint for sophomore fillies over the main track in Race 7. 

Bred by Seidman Stables, Yo Cuz arrives off a distant fourth-place finish in the NYSSS Park Avenue on April 24 at Aqueduct where she stalked the pace but never fired, finishing 10 1/4 lengths behind upset winner Galaxina. 

The daughter of Laoban broke her maiden in December in the NYSSS Fifth Avenue before stringing together two more stakes triumphs in the one-mile Maddie May and seven-furlong East View. She boasts field-best earnings of $399,800. 

Mark T. Anderson’s Sterling Silver [post 3, Trevor McCarthy] returns to state-bred company after a pair of fifth-place finishes in the Busher Invitational at Aqueduct and Grade 1 Ashland at Keeneland. The Cupid filly, bred by Mallory Mort and Karen Mort, was a 2 1/4-length winner of the Franklin Square in her stakes debut in December at the Big A. 

Rounding out the field are November Rein [post 1, Joel Rosario], Adversity [post 4, Kendrick Carmouche], Captainsdaughter [post 5, Javier Castellano], Kisses for Emily [post 6, Dylan Davis], Liberty Flame [post 7, Manny Franco] and True Empress [post 8, Eric Cancel]. 

Peter Kazamias’ Kazmike [post 7, Trevor McCarthy] will look to win his second stakes in a row in the $125,000 Mike Lee for sophomores sprinting seven furlongs over Big Sandy in Race 8. 

Trained by Dimitrios Synnefias, Kazmike broke his maiden in style in the $200,000 NYSSS Times Square sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs on April 23 over the main track at Aqueduct Racetrack. The homebred son of Bank Heist finished second in his first two starts at the maiden special weight level and was beaten a nose on debut by returning rival Hot Rod Rumble [post 8, Joel Rosario]. 

Hot Rod Rumble, a gelded son of Midnight Storm, enters on a two-race win streak that includes his maiden-breaking score over Kazmike and a last-out allowance victory on April 24 at Aqueduct where he defeated fellow Mike Lee aspirant Who Hoo That’s Me [post 9, Dylan Davis] by three-quarters of a length. He earned a field-best 82 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort. Hot Rod Rumble, bred by Stephen Crestani Jr., is owned by Rockingham Ranch and trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen. 

Completing the field are Rebel Empire [post 1, Kendrick Carmouche], Best Idea [post 2, John Velazquez], Agility [post 3, Jose Ortiz], Tin Pan Alley [post 4, Manny Franco], Rotknee [post 5, Luis Saez] and Salute to America [post 6, Javier Castellano].

Trainer Mike Maker will send out multiple graded stakes winning millionaires Cross Border and Somelikeithotbrown in the $125,000 Kingston [Race 9], a 1 1/16-mile inner turf test for older horses.

Three Diamonds Farm's Cross Border [post 5, Luis Saez], bred by Berkshire Stud and B. D. Gibbs, boasts a record of 41-11-8-5 for purse earnings in excess of $1.1 million led by back-to-back scores in the Grade 2 Bowling Green in 2020-21 at Saratoga Race Course. The 8-year-old English Channel ridgling finished a close fifth in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational in January at Gulfstream Park and enters from a distant fourth-place finish in the Kentucky Cup Classic on April 2 over the Turfway Park synthetic.

Skychai Racing and David Koenig's Somelikeithotbrown [post 7, Jose Ortiz], bred by Hot Pink Stables and Sand Dollar Stables, was last seen posting a gate-to-wire score over returning rivals Sanctuary City and City Man in the 1 1/16-mile Mohawk in November at Belmont. The 6-year-old son of Big Brown, who captured the 2019 Jeff Ruby Steaks at Turfway Park, added graded turf wins to his ledger in the 2020 Grade 2 Bernard Baruch at the Spa and last year's Grade 2 Dinner Party at Pimlico Race Course.

A talented field includes the Christophe Clement-trained pair of City Man [post 2, Joel Rosario] and Therapist [post 3, Eric Cancel], along with Ocala Dream [post 1, Javier Castellano], Advanced Strategy [post 4, Trevor McCarthy], Sanctuary City [post 6, Kendrick Carmouche], and Step Dancer [post 8, Dylan Davis].

First post on Monday’s 10-race card is 1 p.m. Eastern.

America’s Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the spring/summer meet at Belmont Park on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/belmont/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Belmont Park, and the best way to bet every race of the spring/summer meet. Available to horse players nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.