Casse pair of La Cara, Nitrogen head competitive renewal of G1 Alabama pres. by Keeneland Sales
Dual Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse will be represented by two top-class fillies in multiple graded stakes-winners La Cara and Nitrogen for Saturday’s Grade 1, $600,000 Alabama presented by Keeneland Sales, a 10-furlong test for sophomore fillies, at Saratoga Race Course.
Casse, a member of both the United States’ and Canada’s Racing Halls of Fame, has won each of Canada’s Triple Crown races several times, and owns two-thirds of the American Triple Crown, but the veteran conditioner said he has always longed to win an Alabama.
"It's a dream come true,” Casse said of having two top contenders in the race. “I've been watching the Alabama since I was eight, and to have two legitimate chances... I think it's not set in stone, but this race is going to be a big deciding factor in who's going to be Champion 3-Year-Old Filly. Obviously, someone can go on and win the Breeders' Cup and that would trump whatever happens in the Alabama, but we'll have a clear-cut leader once the dust is settled.”
Leading the charge for Casse is Tracy Farmer’s dual Grade 1-winning Kentucky homebred La Cara, who enters from a three-length annexing of the Grade 1 DK Horse Acorn on June 6 here over sloppy and sealed footing. The wire-to-wire effort came on the heels of a distant pacesetting ninth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks in May, a race she qualified for thanks in large part to a strong 1 1/4-length victory in the Grade 1 Ashland in April at Keeneland.
Casse said La Cara is a consummate professional.
"She likes what she does,” Casse said. “I'm just lucky to come along for the ride and I just try to stay out of her way."
The daughter of Street Sense was set to run in the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks on July 19 here, but was forced to scratch after a quarantine for suspected strangles was placed on the barn she was stabled in.
Casse said La Cara has trained forwardly in the interim, but did admit some apprehension about missing a key race in her schedule.
“I’m concerned about it as I like to have my horses in a race pattern and we got out of it,” Casse said. “Now, we are not only out of that pattern, but now we’re going the farthest she’s ever went. If I didn’t tell you I was a little concerned about it, then I wouldn’t be telling you the truth. On a brighter note, she’s training really good and she’s very happy. I think she looks better right now than she’s looked all year long from a physical standpoint, so maybe that break did help her a little.”
La Cara, who also captured the Grade 3 Pocahontas last year at Churchill and the Listed Suncoast in February at Tampa Bay Downs, is out of the Bernardini mare Cara Caterina, a full-sister to millionaire multiple graded stakes-winner To Honor and Serve and Grade 1-winner Angela Renee, and a half-sister to Grade 1-placed Elnaawi.
Regular pilot Dylan Davis has the call from the outermost post 6.
D.J. Stable’s Nitrogen seeks her first Grade 1 victory on the back of a nose defeat to Fionn in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational over turf on July 5 here. The Medaglia d’Oro bay pounced to a head lead at the top of the lane and led into the stretch, but was nailed late and had a five-race win streak ended as Fionn set a track record of 1:44.84.
"She's ready and she's perfect,” Casse said. “She’s a good work horse and very easy to train. We're excited to see her on the dirt. It was a toughie last time, but she's come out of it good."
Nitrogen’s five-race win streak was an impressive one, beginning with half-length wins in Florida in the Listed Ginger Brew in January at Gulfstream Park and the Grade 3 Florida Oaks in March at Tampa Bay Downs. She stepped up for a convincing 2 1/4-length annexing of the Grade 2 Appalachian in April at Keeneland before displaying her talents on the May 2 Kentucky Oaks undercard with an open-lengths stroll in the Grade 2 Edgewood at Churchill Downs.
It was then that Nitrogen made her dirt debut in unplanned circumstances, taking on one-mile of sloppy and sealed Saratoga dirt after heavy downpours forced the Grade 2 Wonder Again to be moved to the main track and downgraded to a Grade 3 on June 7 here. Nitrogen not only proved she could handle the dirt, but smashed all expectations when drawing off to a 17-length romp in the compact field of three, earning a career-best 91 Beyer Speed Figure in victory.
Casse said Nitrogen’s recent dirt works, including a five-eighths breeze in 1:01.92 in company on August 6, are enough to convince him that she should handle a dry track, too.
“I would have said that I was concerned that maybe she just liked the slop, but she’s trained so well on the dirt the last couple breezes that I really don’t have much of a concern,” Casse concluded.
Jose Ortiz, aboard Nitrogen for her last seven starts, returns to the irons from post 4.
Dual Eclipse Award-winning conditioner Brad Cox will also send out a formidable pair of contenders with Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks victress Good Cheer [post 2, Luis Saez] and Grade 2-winner Margie’s Intention [post 1, Irad Ortiz, Jr.].
Godolphin’s Good Cheer was a perfect 7-for-7 to start her career, led by five consecutive stakes wins in the Listed Rags to Riches and Grade 2 Golden Rod at Churchill Downs, the Grade 2 Rachel Alexandra and Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks at Fair Grounds Race Course, and a triumphant return to Churchill to capture the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks by 2 1/4 lengths over nine-furlongs of wet-fast and sealed footing.
In the Oaks, Good Cheer rallied from farther back than ever before in her career as she tracked in eighth-of-13 through the half-mile in 46.78 seconds. Luis Saez guided her five-wide through the turn and Good Cheer swept past her rivals in the lane to notch her seventh consecutive victory in a final time of 1:50.15.
“Few fillies have won the Kentucky Oaks undefeated, so to be among them is a very special thing,” said Blake Cox, son of and assistant to Brad. “Hopefully we can get her back to form and finish the year off strong.”
Good Cheer had her win streak ended last out when finishing a flat fifth in the Acorn on June 6, finishing 9 1/4 lengths back of La Cara over the sloppy and sealed main track. The effort was a puzzling one, but Cox said the team is looking forward to getting the daughter of Medaglia d’Oro back to the winner’s circle.
“She’s doing great,” Cox said. “She was perfect until the Acorn and we can’t really come up with an excuse – maybe the racetrack, I guess, but you could tell she wasn’t traveling well throughout the race, so we’ll give her one more shot here going a mile and a quarter. She should like it, and we’ve given her plenty of time. She’s done well up here, so fingers crossed we get her back in the win column.”
A Kentucky homebred for Godolphin, Good Cheer is out of the multiple graded stakes-winning Street Sense mare Wedding Toast, who also produced stakes-winner Ya Hayati.
Baron Stable and WinStar Farm’s Margie’s Intention makes her Grade 1 bow off a deep-closing second to Fondly in the Grade 3 Delaware Oaks on June 14 at its namesake oval. The daughter of Honor A.P. makes her third start for Cox after beginning her career at Fair Grounds with trainer Brendan Walsh, and made her barn debut a winning one when taking the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan on May 16 at Pimlico Race Course.
“After Delaware, they sent her to WinStar just to put some weight on her and she came back here at the beginning of the meet,” Cox said. “She’s been doing extremely well – her works have been good, her weight is good, and she’s trained great. We’re hoping she gets a piece of it. She couldn’t be doing any better.”
Cox added that Margie’s Intention’s mental fortitude shone brightly at Pimlico when grinding out the three-quarter-length victory after a lengthy weather delay.
“There was the big rainstorm, and they were circling in the barn, but she has a great mind, is very smart, and she’s a total class act,” Cox said. “She showed that day after she ran that well that she’s a serious filly.”
A $185,000 purchase at the OBS Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, the Louisiana-bred Margie’s Intention is out of the unraced Into Mischief mare Playful Dancer.
International interest will be provided by Team Valor International’s Queen Azteca [post 5, Joel Rosario], who ships in from Norway to make her North American debut for trainer Niels Petersen.
The Kentucky-bred daughter of Sharp Azteca began her career in Norway before graduating at third asking in September at Jagersro in Sweden. She then traveled to Dubai to make four starts at Meydan Racecourse, led by a three-quarter-length win on February 21 in the 1 3/16-mile Group 3 UAE Oaks in which she made up significant ground late to collar pacesetter Arigatou Gozaimasu in the final strides. That effort came after an eye-catching eight-length allowance romp going about one mile on January 17.
The bay filly subsequently finished fifth against males in the Group 2 UAE Derby in April before heading back to Jagersro to post a win going 1 3/8 miles in June and a 1 3/4-length second in the 12-furlong Jockeyklubben Svenskt Derby last out on July 13.
Originally a $22,000 purchase at the 2023 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Queen Azteca is out of the Palace Malice mare Princesa Helena, and her fourth dam is Hall of Famer Personal Ensign.
Completing the field is John Holleman and trainer Greg Compton's dual graded stakes-placed Kinzie Queen [post 3, Junior Alvarado], who enters from a third in the Delaware Oaks when three-quarter lengths behind Margie’s Intention.
The Alabama is slated as Race 10 on Saturday’s 12-race card, which also features the Listed $150,000 Skidmore in Race 9. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.
Saratoga Live will present live coverage and analysis of the summer meet at Saratoga Race Course on the networks of FOX Sports. For the broadcast schedule and channel finder, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule/.
NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Saratoga Race Course, and the best way to bet every race of the summer meet. Available to horse players nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.