The Wood Memorial (Grade 2)- $750.000 Purse
AQU- For Three Year Olds
One Mile and One Eighth on the Dirt
April 8, 2023
We are now only a month away from the KYD, and there are only four races remaining that will pay those valuable points to get into the big race. Three of them are occurring on Saturday, and all of these races pay 100 points for their winner. Next week, there is a 20-point race just in case anyone needs to throw a Hail Mary at the end. Here, we will look at the Wood Memorial, a nine-furlong race held at the Big A. This race first appeared as a Grade 1 in 2004, and it carried that designation until 2017, when it was downgraded. The current purse level of $750.000 has been common for the race, although there was a six-year period during the 2010’s when that purse was at the $1,000.000 mark. Looking at the KYD leaderboard right now, there are a few sure things to get into the race, but with Mb Stables eight of the top 20 spots right now, there is also a lot that is up for grabs between the three races that are held on Saturday. After all, Mb can only race three of them, but the secondary question with that will be whether or not he chooses to sell any of them if the price was right. Last year, Fractious won his second Wood Memorial in a row, winning on this occasion with the late Up In Smoke. Unfortunately for Fractious, the Wood Memorial was the last hurrah for that one, as he struggled afterwards. Other past Wood Memorial winners include Vouvray, Atomic Twister, and Charleys Latte. As we would expect, the starting gate is full for the race, so let’s take a look at our fourteen runners!
#1- Lunar Eclipse (Dmc Racing, ridden by F Pennington)- The trainer is in just their second year, so to get Lunar Eclipse to this point is a strong testament to their ability. This colt has 15 points right now, sitting 39th on the board, thanks in large part to his effort in the Risen Star. Most likely will need to get at least third place points to get into the KYD, but fourth could have the trainer watching the results of the other races very closely. He was underwhelming just two weeks ago in the LA Derby, unable to close from behind on the same track that he did the same thing on in the Risen Star.
#2- Battle Plan (Mb Stables, ridden by E J Wilson)- Since Mb Stables needs to get into the KYD… wait, that’s not the reason. Sometimes, it’s just about winning a race with a $750.000 purse, and that is likely why Battle Plan, who only has one career start, is entered here. Now, that start went well, winning two weeks ago on the grass at GP, and it will be a short turnaround for him here. Unless Battle Plan wins this by at least six lengths, I can’t see Mb picking him for the KYD, but by now, he’s planning for the PRK.
#3- Timeless (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by J Lezcano)- There have been times when this trainer had multiple contenders to get into the KYD, but now his highest runner is 40th on the leaderboard. That’s not Timeless, as you have to go down the list even further to find him and his six points in 65th. After looking great here in December in the Great White Way, then a sold third in the Lecomte, Timeless has only finished in the middle of the field over his last two starts. He has been close enough to keep trying and still have hope that he could get in, and the trainer picked the right track to go to. Timeless is 2-for-2 at the Big A.
#4- Bold Ruler (Fractious, ridden by A S Worrie)- The trainer is looking for his third straight win in the Wood Memorial, and Bold Ruler gives him a pretty good shot to do so. Thanks in large part to winning the Lewis Stakes at SA in February, this colt sits 20th on the board right now, with 32 points, and is the highest Fractious-owned horse. He’s two valuable points ahead of a four-way tie at 30 points, and with eight Mb Stables horses ahead of him, I’d have some hope that he gets in regardless of how he does here. However, just a little bit more of a cushion may be nice.
#5- Two Million (Asgar, ridden by M Murrill)- Over half of his nine races up to this point have been against LA-breds, and he comes here off a win in the Crescent City Derby two weeks ago. Though he’s been more reliable at hitting the board than he has been in winning those races, that has not helped him with many points for the KYD chase. He did run in the Lewis Stakes, but finished in seventh that day, four lengths behind Bold Ruler. Asgar has a few in the top 100 on the leaderboard, but nothing in a spot that gets him into the race right now. Two Million must step up here to help that cause.
#6- Domiano (Fractious, ridden by D Davis)- Arrived with Fractious towards the beginning of March, thanks to a $400.000 private sales transaction with Night Mare Racing and this will be the first time we see the Hard To Deny colt run in the Fractious silks. Domiano has won just once but has taken a liking to being the runner up, with four second place efforts. That’s allowed him to earn 13 points, placing him 47th, and in a group of Fractious horses on the leaderboard right now. For now, I’m not too worried about him rebounding from the San Felipe, but suffice to say, he must do so.
#7- Ocala Secret (Grimley, ridden by P Husbands)- Grimley’s back?! It’s good to see this trainer back in the fold, and he showed with a $200.000 purchase two weeks ago of Ocala Secret that he has the intention of getting back to where he used to be in this game. Does this horse have what it takes though? He hasn’t run since January, and while he did race in the BC Juvenile Turf last fall, it’s been six months since his last strong race. Obviously, the trainer believes in him, and we’ll see if that faith is rewarded.
#8- Derby Proud (Mb Stables, ridden by J Talamo)- Until his last start, Derby Proud had exclusively been a turf horse, and was able to run in the BC Juvenile Turf Sprint last fall. Since then, he has not really done a whole lot, running in a couple of optional claimers before finishing fifth in the Gotham last month. He made some late moves there, and that can give hope that he will only like the longer distances of the TC, but when you’re in this barn, it’s just as hard to stand out against your stablemates as it as the competition.
#9- South Point (Alydar Stables, ridden by J J Hernandez)- After being gelded in December, South Point broke his maiden a month later and carried that momentum into the Grade 3 Davis Stakes, where he ran second. That gave him the eight points that he presently has, so he must at least finish in the top two here. Unfortunately, his last race did leave a lot to be desired, where he simply failed to show up in the TAM Derby. If the trainer knows why that happened, then there’s no reason to be concerned, but it must be improved on here.
#10- Insilca (First Flight Stable, ridden by K Carmouche)- Over his seven-race career, Insilca has had hit and miss success, though neither of his two victories came at the stake level. He did turn in a third-place effort at the Great White Way right here in November but had a real head scratcher in the race that followed. That cost him his ability to breed, and the first-time gelding bounced back by going wire to wire in an optional claimer here six weeks ago. Overall, his inconsistency is a turn off. Maybe he gets it done, but my virtual money wouldn’t ride on it.
#11- Sweet Shine (Mb Stables, ridden by A Bocachica)- Like his stablemates, Sweet Shine has some work to do to in order to get into the KYD. Presently, he sits 50th on the leaderboard with ten points, thanks to winning the Smarty Jones at OP on New Year’s Day. Since then, he has struggled, with two subpar efforts, coming in the Southwest and the Fountain of Youth. That may make the trainer to run him in the KYD even if he ended up winning the Wood Memorial, given the other options that he will have.
#12- Justice Of The Peace (Maletto, ridden by S W Corbett)- At first, I thought his ten starts up to this point would be the most of any in the field, but then I saw another one that we’ll be getting to in a bit. Justice Of The Peace has done a lot of his running against PA-breds, and did manage to win two such stakes last year. Last month would be the first time that he was put on the KYD trail, and while you can’t say he was terrible in the Fountain Of Youth, finishing seventh and missing by two lengths isn’t going to get you want points. What it does show is the potential of the horse, but he will need to improve a bit off of that.
#13- Range Rover (Arindel, ridden by D Moran)- Arindel is another trainer that might need to make a choice for the KYD when deciding which three will represent him. Right now, he has three in the top of eleven, none of which are Range Rover. He also has Peace Pipe in 27th, and figures to have solid entries in each of the three preps that run on Saturday to get another one in the top twenty. As for Range Rover, he has won three of seven, including an ungraded stake at FG, but he has struggled to run well at the graded level. Last month, he was a non-factor at the TAM Derby, placing eighth. He had a great pair of works at a mile in late March, but he has to translate that into this type of a race. Don’t rule this one out.
#14- Noble Faerie (Riggins Racing, ridden by M E Smith)- Lastly, we get a horse who will making his 14th career start. In that time, he has managed five victories, highlighted by the Grade 3 Hope Stakes when he was running for Williams9. But he could not carry the momentum for that trainer, and he opted to sell him off for $200.000, where he landed with Riggins. The new trainer has gotten him going again, as he placed second in the Gotham, getting his picture taken with the winner and moving his KYD point total up to 20. He’ll need at least a top two here. This will be his third straight race starting from a double-digit post.
Prediction: 4-5-13-8
— NS
Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES
