Read Stakes (Grade 2)- $250.000 Purse
DMR- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Eighth on the Turf
July 17, 2016
It may be a smaller field of only six entries, but there is no lack of talent in the 13th running of the Grade 2 Read Stakes at DMR this year. This field is quite accomplished, with the likes of Milestone and Spotted Cat headlining a field where everyone is a past stake winner. That is only fitting for a race that has seen the likes of Charming Behrens and Snippets visit the winner’s circle. Last year, the race was won by Tin Lizzie, making it just the first time since the inaugural edition that a three year old has come out on top. With the way the younger horses are beating up their seniors in races like this, you have to at least give our lone three year old here, Keep Silent, some extra consideration in your picks. Let’s meet the field!
#1- Full Speed Ahead (Night Rider Stables, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- This deep closer will have the other jockeys looking over their shoulders in the stretch. The five year old gelding has not necessarily been winning, but he is on a great run of consistent form right now in races much like this one with three consecutive 100 SRF’s. Those were all third places finishes, but were against the best of the best, including the recent Manhattan Handicap at BEL. I loved his stretch performance in that one, and he is a real deal closer. The Manhattan winner, Bombastic Kathology, was simply not giving up in that one. He meets some good ones again, but I am not sure how much early pace there will be here, so Bridgmohan is going to have to time the run perfectly.
#2- Kenny Wisconsin (Frozen Tundra, ridden by T J Pereira)- While Full Speed Ahead and Milestone were running in big races on the BEL undercard, Kenny Wisconsin was here in California, and won the $100.000 Crystal Water against CA-breds out at SA. In the win, he came from a bit off the pace to pick up the victory, but past history also shows that he isn’t afraid to get up on the lead, either. The 100 SRF he earned that day was a career high, and he is one to watch as he goes a little longer in this race. He’s tried graded company once before, finishing 5th of 10 in the Grade 3 Thunder Road at SA, and there’s no reason to think that he can’t win this one.
#3- Milestone (Mcl Stables, ridden by C P DeCarlo)- Last month, he picked up quite a score for his trainer in winning the prestigious Metropolitan Handicap against the likes of A One and Port On The Horizon. Spotted Cat was there too, and we’ll get to him shortly. He was ridden beautifully in that race, and C P DeCarlo will be back in the saddle again. Milestone also showed a ton of heart, and you knew he would go on to bigger and better things after that win. What I was not expecting, was him to try the turf immediately after that race. Only once has he been on the grass, and that was in 2015 out at BTP in a $10.200 allowance, so we don’t want to put too much stock into that effort. Mcl Stables has made the right moves each time with Milestone, so we’ll see how this pans out.
#4- Spotted Cat (Blushing Meadows, ridden by D Moran)- You can look at the matchup between Milestone and Spotted Cat exclusively as you would two sports teams having games back-to-back in a home and away leg against one another. At the Metropolitan, they met on Milestone’s surface, the main track. At the Read, they meet where Spotted Cat has been at his best, on the grass. Last month, Blushing Meadows took a shot to see how his superstar would fare on the dirt, and it’s safe to say it did not go as he envisioned. Now, he’s back on the grass, and he meets Milestone trying out the surface. This is a strong horse that has underachieved a little bit in 2016, and seems overdue for a trip back to the winner’s circle. His recent SRF numbers are not as high as the others, but I am not going to worry about that. I like him in this field, and don’t overlook that he was won three of his last four at this exact distance. I’m giving him the nod as the one to beat.
#5- Keep Silent (Nakamura Stables, ridden by K J Desormeaux)- The three year old gelding will enjoy a five pound weight advantage over everyone else in this field, and in recent months that has mattered quite a bit. Keep Silent knows how to get it done, winning five of eight career races, one of which being the Grade 3 Marine Stakes at WO. This will be his turf debut, and I am not really able to gather an opinion as to how I believe he will fare as he has no public turf works as Nakamura has kept them silent. You can see why the trainer would take this shot though if the farm works back it up, and I do think he’s going to contend.
#6- Jovan River (Mb Stables, ridden by F Pennington)- A winner of four in a row, Jovan River looks to continue where he left off in the Grade 3 Poker Handicap last month. He won the mile turf event at BEL, and picked up a 101 SRF, his highest such number to date. His streak began in allowance company, but also includes the ungraded $100.000 Dangers Hour, also at a mile. I like the chemistry that he found with turf star F Pennington, and even though he carries a little more weight here for a little longer of a distance, if he shows that form here, that streak can be pushed to five.
Prediction: 4-1-6-3
— NS
Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES
