Hope Road goes for Grade 1 glory in Resorts World Casino Ballerina

Cicero Farms’ Kentucky homebred Hope Road will ship in from California to make her fourth attempt at a top-level victory in Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Resorts World Casino Ballerina, a seven-furlong sprint for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up, at Saratoga Race Course.

The Ballerina offers a “Win and You’re In” berth into the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint on November 1 at Del Mar.

The Ballerina [Race 11] is one of six graded events slated for Saturday’s lucrative 14-race card, headlined by the Grade 1, $1.25 million DraftKings Travers in Race 13. The card will also feature the Grade 1, $500,000 Personal Ensign [Race 9, a “Win and You’re In” for the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Distaff]; two additional Grade 1, $500,000 seven-furlong sprints in the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial [Race 10] and the Forego [Race 12, a “Win and You’re In” for the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile]; and the Grade 2, $400,000 Lake Placid in Race 7. First post is 11:10 a.m. Eastern with gates opening to the public at 9 a.m.

Trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, the 4-year-old daughter of Quality Road has made her last two starts at Churchill Downs, landing second to Kopion in the seven-furlong Grade 1 Derby City Distaff on the May 3 Kentucky Derby card and following three weeks later with a third to Two Sharp in the Grade 3 Winning Colors.

In the Derby City Distaff, Hope Road stalked the pace set by returning rival Mystic Lake and took a head lead at the stretch call, but could not fend off the well-regarded Kopion and settled for the minor awards three lengths back, earning a career and field-best 104 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort. She cut back to six furlongs for the Winning Colors where she endured a rough start and chased throughout.

Baffert said he is looking forward to running a refreshed Hope Road in a race her mother, Marley’s Freedom, won for these connections in 2018.

“I think she ran her race in the big race on Derby Day and then she came back and I think she probably didn’t bring her ‘A’ race that day,” Baffert said. “But she’s freshened up and she’s training well, so we’re giving her a chance. Her mother won this race a few years ago, so hopefully she can have the same kind of luck.

“I think this is what she wants,” Baffert added of the distance. “She can go two turns, but I think seven-eighths is a good distance for her.”

Hope Road made her first three outings for trainer John Sadler before moving to the Baffert barn last June. She won her first four outings for the dual Triple Crown-winning conditioner as she posted open-lengths victories in a June maiden, an August optional claimer and the Grade 3 Torrey Pines last August at Del Mar ahead of a hard-fought half-length win in the Grade 3 Bayakoa in November over the same oval. She concluded the year with an even fourth in Santa Anita Park’s Grade 1 La Brea and returned in February to finish a pacesetting second in the Grade 2 Santa Monica there.

Jose Ortiz will pick up the mount from post 9.

The New York-bred My Mane Squeeze [post 8, Luis Saez] earned a 100 Beyer Speed Figure for a last-out 6 1/4-length trouncing of the state-bred Johnstone over course and distance for trainer Mike Maker. There, she led at each point of call under regular rider Luis Saez and was never in doubt as she coasted home under a hand ride in a final time of 1:22.66.

A homebred for William “Buck” Butler, who co-owns the 4-year-old Audible filly with WinStar Farm, My Mane Squeeze is a dual graded stakes-winner at this distance, taking the Grade 2 Eight Belles and Grade 3 Dogwood last year at Churchill Downs. Her stellar 17-7-2-5 record also includes Grade 1 placings at seven furlongs when third in both the local Test presented by Ticketmaster last year and the Madison in April at Keeneland. 

The reigning NYTB Horse of the Year is out of the stakes-winning Speightstown mare In Spite of Mama and is a half-sister to Grade 3-placed multiple stakes-winner Rotknee, stakes-winner Mama’s Gold and multiple stakes-placed Lookin for Trouble.

Stonestreet Stables and Peter Leidel’s Zeitlos [post 6, Junior Alvarado] returns to dirt after a deep-closing half-length second to the streaking Future Is Now in the Grade 3 Caress sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs over the Mellon turf on July 19 here. Future Is Now exited that race to win the Listed Smart and Fancy on August 15 here.

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, the 5-year-old Curlin mare hit the board in both of her starts on dirt this year, beginning with a 1 1/2-length win in the six-furlong Listed Skipat in May at Pimlico Race Course. She followed with a closing third to Vahva in the Grade 2 Chicago on June 21 at Churchill Downs when 3 1/4 lengths of runner-up and returning rival Claret Beret ahead of her Caress effort, which yielded a career-best 97 Beyer.

“She absolutely ran well on the grass,” said Asmussen’s assistant Scott Blasi. “She just tries so hard that it doesn’t matter what surface you run her on. This is a Grade 1, going seven-eighths, at Saratoga, so we’ll take our shot.”

Zeitlos seeks to add to her 20-9-5-2 record that already includes a win in the six-furlong Grade 2 Thoroughbred Club of America in October at Keeneland and three other stakes wins. She has banked over $1.1 million in total purse earnings.

WSS Racing’s Brightwork [post 2, John Velazquez] is already a Grade 1 winner over course and distance, taking the 2023 Spinaway to cap a four-race win streak to begin her career for trainer John Ortiz.

Ortiz said the 4-year-old daughter of Outwork has enjoyed returning to the Spa, where she also notched a five-length score in the Grade 3 Adirondack as part of her aforementioned win streak, and the Grade 3 Prioress last summer. Her recent local workouts include a sharp half-mile in 47.87 seconds over the main track on August 9.

“We’ve been making sure everything on our checklist is good, and right now she’s doing even better than we hoped,” Ortiz said. “We brought her up here because she obviously loves Saratoga. I think she just loves the atmosphere, as do I, it is just a different air here. She feels that and her workouts have shown it. Back in Kentucky, her workouts were pretty mid, but here, she’s really stepped it up.”

Brightwork looks to return to her best form after a pair of off-the-board efforts to start her current campaign. She enters from a distant eighth in the Chicago where she tracked in fourth early and faltered in the latter stages.

Second in the Chicago was Miller Racing’s Claret Beret [post 5, Irad Ortiz, Jr.], who nearly defeated Grade 1-winner Vahva when finishing three-quarter-lengths back in her graded stakes debut.

Trained by Saffie Joseph, Jr., the 4-year-old Not This Time filly made her first 7 starts for trainer Brendan Walsh before being claimed for $62,500 out of a six-length win in October at Keeneland. After four starts for trainer Greg Compton, she was purchased privately and moved to the Joseph, Jr. barn. She posted a career-best performance at first asking for new connections, trouncing a one-mile handicap by 19 3/4 lengths in May at Gulfstream Park.

“The first time we ran her was a mile, and I think her best distance is probably the one-turn mile,” Joseph, Jr. said. “The cutback was a little question mark against top class horses [in the Chicago], but she delivered and made a move against Vahva. She seems to be in good order. She does well with good spacing and we’re happy with where she’s at.” 

Joseph, Jr. will also send out C2 Racing Stable and Stefania Farms’ multiple graded stakes-winner Mystic Lake [post 1, Ricardo Santana, Jr.], who enters from back-to-back stakes wins in the Memorial Day Sprint in May at Lone Star Park and the Dashing Beauty last out on July 17 at Delaware Park. The 4-year-old Mo Town dark bay won the Grade 2 Inside Information in January at Gulfstream Park, and notched two graded wins last year in the Grade 3 Miss Preakness at Pimlico and the Grade 2 Charles Town Oaks at its namesake course.

Completing the field are dual graded stakes-winner Scylla [post 7, Flavien Prat] for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, last-out Grade 2 Honorable Miss-winner Halina’s Forte [post 4, Joel Rosario] for trainer Phil Bauer, and Grade 3-placed Majestic Oops [post 3, Kendrick Carmouche] for trainer Dan Ward. 

A special DraftKings Travers Day edition of Saratoga Live will air on FS2 beginning at noon. FOX Saratoga Saturday will present live coverage and analysis of the DraftKings Travers Day stakes action beginning at 3 p.m. For the broadcast schedule and channel finder, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule/.

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