Mahony (Grade 3)- $225.00 Purse
SAR- For Three Year Olds
Five and a Half Furlongs on the Turf
August 16, 2026

Sunday’s card at SAR is highlighted by the eighth running of the Mahony, which is a turf sprint for three year olds and this year’s version will feature the largest purse that it ever has: $225.00. This is also the second year that the race has held a graded designation, and there will be a field of seven heading to the starting gate looking for the top prize. That was something that was won by Spin Zone last year, as the Mb Stables gelding prevailed in a photo to secure the win. He would go on to finish fourth in the BC Turf Sprint later in the year, and continued to fare well into this year, though after his last race, it remains to be seen what is next for him. Here’s a look at our field of seven this year!

1- Furious Luka (Night Rider Stables, ridden by I Ortiz)- Gets his biggest career test here in the Mahony and it comes after nearly winning an allowance here last month. Overall, Furious Luka has four wins in ten starts while hitting the board in eight of those, so you can count on him putting in a hard day’s work and being near the winner at the end. That’s earned him this chance, and I do not feel that this is a field he can’t handle even with it being his graded debut.

2- Trojan Horse (Family Racing, ridden by E J Zayas)- After finishing a disappointing ninth in the $100.00 Gun Runner last fall, the colt was moved to the turf and started off with a couple of promising results in hitting the board. Then, he hit a momentary rut before rebounding with a win in his last start, which was an allowance at MTH in late June. He’s made several ungraded starts for his career, and has had his moments of success and struggle. Needs to get a little more consistent.

3- Credit Criminal (Aer Stables, ridden by Jam Rodriguez)- He’s out of Yuhwa, the same dam as the great Credit Crime, and while that’s a hard one to try and follow, Credit Criminal has done alright for himself as well. He’s won three of nine for his career, but if we focus on just his turf starts, he becomes a lot better, winning two of three. This includes $100.00 Shear Mile Stakes at SA as well as the $175.00 Dade Park Dash at ELP, all while barely missing in the $225.00 Walker at CD. He’s run graded on the dirt a couple times, but I am expecting much more out of him here as well as for the rest of the year.

4- Suicide Pact (Spb Racing, ridden by J R Velazquez)- Since the beginning of the year, Suicide Pact has been a regular turf sprinter that has finished somewhere in the top four in all seven of his starts. Three of them have ended up with a trip to the winner’s circle, including his last two races. Each of them came at MTH, in optional claimers, with a similar looking race line of a wire to wire win by a length that earned a 95 SRF. Off of those two strong starts, he is going to race in a stake for just the second time. Interestingly, his previous stake attempt is the same lone stake attempt that Furious Luka tried as a two year old. Each should be contenders here.

5- Express Run (Alydar Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- Express Run has mostly been going longer for his career, and he began this year off with an impressive win in the $150.00 Mucho Macho Man at GP. After running in a couple of KYD preps, he was eventually moved to the grass but would continue running long. Struggled last time out in the $150.00 Saranac, which leads to the shorter distance here. Express Run, in name, should be a sprinter, and when he has on the grass, he’s actually 2-for-3. Hasn’t done that since December, though.

6- Evil Contained (Greyhound, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- Similar to others in the field, Evil Contained has been very consistent throughout his career. That’s been especially true for him while running in the silks of Greyhound, as in those nine starts, he has hit the board eight times, and still earned a fourth place check in the other. While he’s been in more dirt sprints than turf sprints, he’s handled the grass well, running third in the Shear Mile Stakes. Last time out, he ran in the $100.00 My Frenchman Stakes at MTH and finished in a second place dead heat with……

7- Sinister Returns (Simmer Down Stable, ridden by M Franco)- ….. yep, Sinister Returns. Was the evil contained, or did it return in that dead heat? Perhaps we’ll get that answer in the Mahony. While Evil Contained set the pace in the My Frenchman, Sinister Returns was at the back early on and came on strong to get his share of second at the wire. The race was his first for Simmer Down Stable, who had claimed him for $18.00 a few weeks prior. He was a regular turf sprinter for his prior connections, but mainly running in claimers. It was at MTH where Simmer Down, who may possibly be the best claimer in the game (for smaller tags) took notice and had higher expectations. That paid off in the My Frenchman, and now we’ll see how much further he can go.

Prediction: 3-4-6-1

— NS

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES