Carina Mia / NYRA Photo

Saratoga Race Course Notes - 8/5/16

by NYRA Press Office

Saratoga Race Course Notes - 8/5/16

Mott eyes cutback for Carina Mia in G1 Ballerina
Sweet Loretta targets G1 Spinaway, Comfort primed for G1 Whitney, Stopchargingmaria to breeze Sunday for Pletcher
Island Town ready for Sunday's Alydar, Bird Song eyeing G1 King's Bishop
Track, distance suit Royal Posse in Alydar, Dads Caps targeting Tale of the Cat
Seven entered for Monday's Cab Calloway
Fields taking shape for Week 4 stakes

Returning to the Oklahoma training track this morning for her first work since a valiant second-place finish in the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks on July 24, Three Chimneys Farms' Carina Mia completed three furlongs in 36.84 seconds under the watchful eye of Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

"She was good," said Mott. "It was a good work. 36 and 3/5 out in 49 and 1/5. She did it easily and we're happy with her."

With Carina Mia having registered four wins from seven starts in her career ranging from 6 ½ furlongs to 1 1/16 miles, including the Grade 2 Golden Rod at Keeneland as a 2-year-old and this year in the Grade 2 Eight Belles on May 6 at Churchill Downs and Grade 1 Acorn on June 11 at Belmont Park, Mott was looking to regroup and possibly cut her back in distance after falling short going 1 1/8 miles challenging undefeated champion Songbird in the CCA Oaks.

Her next assignment is most likely the Grade 1, $500,000 Ballerina for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up at seven furlongs on Travers Day, August 27. 

"We know we're going up against older horses if we run in the Ballerina," added Mott. "We think seven-eighths to a mile distance is good for her. Obviously, she's a Grade 1 winner at a mile. I think it'll better for her than a mile and a quarter."

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Comfort looks primed for his Grade 1 debut in Saturday's $1.25 million Whitney, trainer Todd Pletcher said on Friday morning. The Indian Charlie colt will exit post 2 with Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez aboard.

Comfort has won his last three starts, including a 3 ¼-length victory in the State Dinner in his previous race on July 4 at Belmont Park.

"The big part of it [his recent success] is the physical maturation he had from [ages] 3 to 4. You see how much bigger and stronger he's gotten," Pletcher said. "He's filled out and has gotten better and better. This is a huge class test for him. He's been performing well, but he's never met these type of horses before. He's trained with horses with similar credentials and trained well. We're looking forward to a big effort."

Sweet Loretta is doing well after an impressive win in her graded stakes debut, the Grade 3 Schuylerville on July 22, Pletcher said. The 2-year-old bay filly broke her maiden in her first race and handled the step up in class with a 4 1/4-length victory in the Schuylerville. She will again face a step up in class in the Grade 1, $350,000 Spinaway on September 3.

"She's doing well and will probably start breezing next week," Pletcher said. "We're given her just a little freshening before we start cranking her up."

Curalina came out of her victory in the Grade 3 Shuvee in fine condition, Pletcher said. The 4-year-old chestnut filly has won two of her last three starts, including the Grade 1 La Troienne. Curalina galloped on Friday.

"She looked good, her energy level was good," Pletcher said. "She had a nice gallop this morning. It looks like she's held her form well."

Stopchargingmaria is slated to work on Sunday morning. The 2015 Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Distaff winner is working toward her first start since a sixth-place showing in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps on June 11. Pletcher said he is still deciding between entering her in the Grade 1 Ballerina or the Grade 1, $750,000 Personal Ensign. Both are on August 27.

Pletcher said Stradivari is still recovering at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital but that "everything is going well" following surgery after suffering a career-ending lateral condylar fracture of his right front leg in training on July 22. 

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After winning three times in six races, including a pair of Grade 3 stakes in 2015, Six Column Stables LLC and Randall Bloch's Island Town will make his Saratoga debut in Sunday's $100,000 Alydar.

The gelded 4-year-old son of Hard Spun, trained by Ian Wilkes, had his sophomore season ended by injury after finishing eighth behind Frosted in the Grade 2 Pennsylvania Derby last September.

Prior to that, Island Town had won three of four starts, sandwiching victories in the Grade 3 Smarty Jones at Parx and the Grade 3 Matt Winn at Churchill Downs around a fifth-place finish in the Grade 2 Indiana Derby over a sloppy track at Indiana Downs.

"He's a nice horse. He's really done well in races like the Matt Winn and Smarty Jones, where he ran really good. That's when I thought he was developing into a really nice horse, and he came out of that last race with a little issue," Wilkes said. "He just needed a minor surgery and he's a gelding, so we just took our time."

Island Town returned to run third, beaten 2 ¼ lengths in the seven-furlong Kelly's Landing July 2 at Churchill. The winner, Alsvid, is another multiple graded stakes winner that went on to run third in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby.

"It's hard to get an allowance for him because he's out of conditions, so it was a good place to start," Wilkes said. "It was just an overnight stake but it came up tough. He's going into this one good."

Island Town drew post 3 under jockey Javier Castellano at co-highweight of 123 pounds.

"You don't want to put him in too deep, but it's come up pretty salty, this race," Wilkes said. "It's a pretty nice race. Well, is Saratoga ever easy?"

Wilkes said that 3-year-old Unbridled's Song colt Bird Song, a homebred for Saratoga socialite Marylou Whitney, came out of a half-mile breeze Thursday in good order and would be pointed to the Grade 1, $500,000 Ketel One King's Bishop on August 27.

"I'll nominate him to the King's Bishop and we'll have a look at that. He's a 3-year-old and he's a very talented horse," Wilkes said. "He's done nothing wrong so we might give him a shot. The main thing is how he trains coming up to it."

Bird Song went four furlongs over the main track in 48.74 seconds, his first work since taking a six-furlong Spa allowance by 1 ¾ lengths July 24 for his second consecutive win. Unraced at 2, he didn't debut until April 29 at Keeneland.

"He worked good. It was just a little maintenance work," Wilkes said. "He's a nice horse. To come out of a maiden and then go to an allowance at Saratoga, you're stepping up in condition and stepping up in class and to still be able to win, that's a good sign."

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Since being claimed for $20,000 last spring by trainer Rudy Rodriguez with Saratoga in mind, Royal Posse has been nothing but consistent. The 5-year-old gelding has finished first or second in 10 consecutive starts for his new connections with four wins and $451,400 in purse earnings.

Sunday's 1 1/8-mile Alydar marks a return to Saratoga for Royal Posse at both a track and a distance he relishes. He has three wins and a second in five tries at Saratoga, and is five-for-eight lifetime at nine furlongs, with one second.

"He's a pretty consistent horse. He doesn't owe us anything. He shows up every time and he's never run a bad race for us. We can't complain," Rodriguez said. "He's doing very good. The race is not easy, but we know he loves the mile and an eighth and he loves Saratoga, so we'll see what he can do there."

Royal Posse had a half-mile work in 49.53 seconds Thursday over the main track as a final tune-up for the Alydar, where he will break from post 1 of eight under Irad Ortiz, Jr. at 121 pounds. This year the New York-bred won the Mr. Sinatra Stakes and was second in the Jazil against open company, and was second in three state-bred stakes, most recently in the 1 1/16-mile Saginaw July 8 at Belmont Park.

"He breezed very, very good yesterday. He's happy and it looks like he came back good out of the work," Rodriguez said. "It's a salty race but this is the race where we have to point and then another race at the end of the meet. Hopefully that works for him."

Rodriguez has another New York-bred, Uno Emayo, entered in Monday's $100,000 New York Stallion Series Cab Calloway Stakes, which would mark the 3-year-old gelding's second straight start on grass. He has won two in a row, both in Maryland, the last a starter optional claimer July 2 at Laurel Park.

Meanwhile, Rodriguez said 6-year-old multiple graded stakes winner Dads Caps will make his next start in the $100,000 Tale of the Cat for 3-year-olds and up at six furlongs August 12. Dads Caps is winless in seven starts since taking the Grade 1 Carter Handicap last April at Aqueduct.

Dads Caps also breezed on Thursday, going five furlongs in 1:00.29 over the Oklahoma training track, the fastest of 16 horses.

"He's won some stakes for us over the years and he's been pretty good to us so we'll hope for the best. He's training very good. He went very, very good the other day and came back nice, and he looks good," Rodriguez said. "He's an honest horse. Hopefully we can finish the year with him and maybe the owner will decide to retire him. We'll take it day-by-day."

Rodriguez has had a relatively slow start to the meet with one win from just 15 starters through the first 12 days. Last year he tied for fourth with 15 victories after finishing in a fifth-place tie with 11 wins in 2014.

"Everything's good. We just need to win some races. Hopefully we start heating up," he said. "The horses look good and they're training good but this meet is very, very tough."

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A field of seven eligible 3-year-olds was entered on the turf for Monday's $100,000 Cab Calloway division of the New York Stallion Stakes series at a mile.

Cloud Control, for trainer John Kimmel and owner-breeders Chester and Mary Broman, comes into the Cab Calloway with two wins from three starts on his resume: a victory in a maiden race on May 22 that came via a disqualification and returned $82.50, and an off-the-pace effort that carried him to a one-length win in the NYSS Spectacular Bid in June.

Angel Arroyo has the mount on the Freud colt from post position 2.

Also returning from the Spectacular Bid are Go Go Lucky, who finished third, and Dearie, who was fifth.

Go Go Lucky, who drew post position 5, will be ridden by Jose Ortiz while Dearie will have the services of Hall of Famer John Velazquez. The pair will depart from post position 3

Rounding out the field are maiden winners Rooftop View and Cuckoo's Saloon; Uno Emayo, who enters off two victories at Laurel Park and Pimlico for trainer Rudy Rodriguez, and the filly Free N Clear, who beat older fillies and mares last time out at Belmont.

Sudden Surprise was entered but will run only if the race comes off the turf.

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The fields are shaping up for an exciting fourth week of racing for the summer Saratoga meet, highlighted by Grade 1, $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap at one mile on the turf on Saturday, August 13.

The Fourstardave cast is comprised of multiple graded stakes winner Force the Pass, who won the 2015 Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational; Grand Arch, winner of the 2015 Fourstardave for trainer Brian Lynch; A Lot, the third-place finisher in the Grade 3 Jaipur Invitational; King Kreesa, winner of the 2015 Grade 3 Poker;Ring Weekend, trainer Graham Motion's Grade 1 Frank E. Kilroe Mile winner, andTourist, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott's 5-year-old who finished second in the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile last out. Reporting Star is also possible.

Wednesday's action will be highlighted by the $100,000 Tale Of The Cat over six furlongs on the main track, where Hall of Famer Bob Baffert's Jimbo Fallon is expected to make his stakes debut. Also targeting the race are Chief Lion, Dads Caps, Green Gratto, Lewys Vaporizer and The Truth Or Else. A pair of entries for trainer Ian Wilkes - Gorgeous Bird and Viva Majorca - are likely as well.Ready For Rye and Stallwalkin' Dude are possible.

Saturday's graded stakes action will kick off with the Grade 2, $200,000 Adirondack for 2-year-old fillies over 6 ½ furlongs. Probable starters are Dial Me, Ever So Clever, Kathleen Elizabeth, Libby's Tail, Nonna Mela, Silvertoni, Southernperfection.

Sunday's live racing program will feature the Grade 2, $200,000 Saratoga Special. Trainer Todd Pletcher's Sonic Mule will make his graded stakes debut after breaking his maiden last out; trainer Steve Asmussen's Tip Tap Tapizar is coming off a third-place finish in his stakes debut in the Grade 3 Bashford Manor. Gunnevera and Recruiting Ready are set to round out the field for the 6 ½-furlong race on the main track for 2-year-olds. Get Lit N Get Wild is also possible.

Monday's $100,000 Saratoga Dew is slated to start Carameaway, Daisy Cutter,JC's Shooting Star, Jules N Rome, Legally Bay and Perfect Freud. Lightning Lilly is a possibility.