KD Juvenile Sprint
KD Race #1 6 1/2f Turf Stake
Purse $750.000 For Two Year Olds.
1 Magadonia TwinTowersRacing Jaramillo E 122 —
Struggled in the Bashford Manor but has come back with a decent turf work and gets a chance at redemption on the grass today. Running from the ace he won a big-ticket maiden at WO before the Bashford Manor so clearly is highly thought of by the owner who will be hoping for a more competitive effort here.
2 Gee Whiz Mb Stables Maldonado E 122 —
A dead heat win at the fair level isn’t exactly a glowing recommendation for a $750.000 stakes race, but it isn’t easy to win a debut race anywhere, so here at HRP we have learnt to overlook the track levels at debut. He showed plenty of pace that day and has come back and worked some strong turf times so with Mb at the reins, the ideal draw and a big purse he will be many people’s choice to take down the win.
3 Criminal Law D J C Racing Stables Alvarado F T 122 —
Sometimes it isn’t about the quality of the wins at this time of year for the juveniles but the number of races they have in their legs and this one has run four times which is pretty optimal. He showed that experience in his SAR maiden win last time battling hard to dead heat for the win, and he has come back and worked a sizzling 6 furlongs time since. Maybe I am getting old, but I can remember a sub 1.10 turf six was being worked by older horses heading to the BC but whether it is a sign of the times or not, it still bodes well for him from a nice gate.
4 Decal Williams9 Garcia Mar 122 —
The trainer has been in great form with their two-year-olds this year and this is an interesting entry as we have very little idea how he will take to the turf. An all the way winner of the grade two SAR Special last time, he is certainly one of the form horses for this but as all his runs and most of his works have been on dirt, we are a little in the dark today. Still at HRP more so than real life the surface doesn’t seem to matter much to good horses, and I can certainly see why the owner was tempted by this huge purse. On dirt he starts favorite, on turf he possibly still does.
5 Mind The Dimes Asgar Lopez P 122 —
Won a LAD Maiden at his third attempt but as always with these races the works are pretty much the same regardless of where you win or lose, and this one has worked the low 58’s for this which seems to be the mark for this race. So, on form it is hard to see him winning, but on works he has a right to do just that, so I guess we will just have to wait and see if he can take this step up.
6 Blackmail Mb Stables Ferrer J C 122 —
Bought for $70.000 after two defeats at lower end tracks, he went to ELP in his first start for Mb Stables and did what you expect when they arrive at Mb’s. Taking to the turf he showed plenty of pace to beat three rivals by a length but now faces a big step up. His works aren’t as impressive as some here, but works can be a blessing or a curse, so we don’t really know what we are going to get until they cross the line.
7 Freak Flag Flying TwinTowersRacing Sanchez M J 122 —
Three runs at lower level winning the last one at FL this is the colts first start on turf and his works on the surface are pretty sharp. It is impossible to really tell these two’s apart at this time of year as we can’t admire them in the flesh of see how they really stretch out in a race so all we can do is look at stats and this one has enough about him to run well.
8 Yankee Hanny Mb Stables Pennington F 122 —
Bought for just over $12.000 at auction he went to SAR and won his maiden there on this surface showing once again just how much this trainer can improve a horse. I like the fact he has had four starts as I really think experience can count for a lot in these early juvenile stakes races and his works are some of the best so he could be the one we are looking for.
9 Leviathan Riggins Racing Gallardo A A 122 —
Noone has been in better form than Riggins Racing recently and they bring this turf virgin here off the back of a great run in the Best Pal. He ran on really well that day but with no turf works or races to go on we don’t know what will happen today. Having said that, I will stick to my mantra that surface doesn’t matter till it does and pick him to be right in the finish.
10 Einstein Arkansas Elite Corbett G W 122 —
The trainer will be disappointed by this draw as this game winner of his last two looks to add to his win in the Tyro Stakes last time. His turf works have been OK although his last two just missed the mark a little, but he is a fighter and that can be a huge advantage especially from the car park draw.
SUMMARY
A tough race to call as always with the juveniles and we could have a bunch of BC class horses or a bunch of future claimers, so it can pay to go with the class factor rather than the unknowns. The ones that are proven are Leviathan and Decal, but we have little clue as to how they will act on the grass but for want of any other clues they could be the safest chances based on the fact we know they have the class gene. Of the others Gee Whiz, Criminal Law and Yankee Hanny look to have chances, but common sense tends to favor Gee Whiz as he is from the stable that laps up these big purses and with a great draw could be the best.
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
