Crosby Stakes (Grade 1) (BC)- $300.000 Purse
DMR- For Three Year Olds and Upward
Six Furlongs on the Dirt
July 31, 2021
Points for the BC Sprint are up for grabs on Saturday in the 18th running of the Crosby Stakes. It will bring together veteran sprinters that have been successful at what they do and a handful of three year olds who, dare we say, failed in their quest to win a TC race, and think they can make a shorter distance their Plan B. Will it work? Last year, Mb Stables won this race with an accomplished sprinter, John Deere, and that horse went on to win the BC Sprint. The two prior races were each won by Z One Chance, another horse who made his name in sprints. So, this isn’t going to be easy for the likes of Smokin Luka or Tko as they hope they can handle these rivals. It should be an entertaining race. Here’s the field!
#1- On The Turning Away (Gdp Inc, ridden by D Van Dyke)- This is a five year old gelding that makes his 21st career start, but until this year he had never shown his true potential. In April, he surprised many when he won the Grade 1 Carter Handicap just a few weeks after looking sharp in an optional claimer. After that, he showed it was not a fluke or a product of weight when he finished third in the Grade 1 CD, each race earning a 100 SRF. For some reason, he was dropped into an open allowance in his last start, but if the trainer needed a confidence boost in him, he surely got it.
#2- Geronimo (Nakamura Stables, ridden by V R Carrasco)- We saw him in the KYD last year, where he went out and showed his sprinting potential with the quick fractions he set. It would not be until late November to where he did get moved into sprints, and gradually, this is a move that has paid off. The Pocono General gelding has three wins in his last four starts, with two of them being Grade 3’s. He has not really won a race of this stature yet, but that could change with the way he is running right now.
#3- Expert Eye (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by D Moran)- He got hot during the summer months last year, putting together a three race winning streak, but cooled off when the temperature began doing the same. This year, once again he might be getting hot this time of year, as he nearly won the Grade 3 Bold Venture in his last start, missing out in a close photo to that very horse that is starting on his inside here, Geronimo. Not sure if he has the consistency I like to see, as lately, he has been rotating good and bad starts. That trend would not be favorable here.
#4- Tko (Fractious, ridden by E Jaramillo)- A much liked and talked about horse over the TC prep races, and he ended up having a decent showing in the KYD, finishing in the sixth position. He was not able to build on that in the PRK, however, placing 8th, and more concerningly, he was a no show in the Dwyer in his last start, fizzling out after setting the pace. So, off of that, he is going to take on some of the better true sprinters in the game and hope for a better result. This will excite many people, and I expect him to run well, but he has also not run under a mile in ten months.
#5- Code Red Party (Martyparty, ridden by S Ryan)- This is one of the three year olds in the race, so that earns him a five point weight allowance over many of the other horses. He’s been very consistent for his career, and with a little more luck at the wire, he very well could have won all of his first eight starts. Instead, he managed three victories during that stretch. His career highlight right now is winning the Grade 3 Swale, which is a tough race to win, but he has not always run at this level. Last start is a head scratcher, but maybe we can throw that out as everyone has an occasional dud.
#6- Korean Boyband (Night Rider Stables, ridden by M Franco)- Early in his career, this gelding found himself racing against NY-breds quite often, and that includes a stake here and there. Eventually, prior trainer Team 7 Illusions lost confidence in him, and put him up for a $35.000 tag. Night Rider was willing to pay the price. It was not an immediate success story, and after winning an allowance, Korean Boyband struggled in his next two. Then, in the Grade 3 Smile Sprint Handicap, he came out of nowhere to get a win, running a 100 SRF. It’s a bit risky to think he can do the same again, but it could give a good reward.
#7- Kid Commander (Allinthegate, ridden by T Gaffalione)- This is definitely a horse that knows how to win, doing so in 12 of his 18 career starts, and he has also won seven of his last nine. He comes into this race off of a Grade 1 win. So, he should be the obvious favorite, right? Well, that was all on the grass. Kid Commander has not run on the main track since August 2019 and has become a dominant force in turf sprints. With the way he is running on the grass, I definitely like the move to run him here, to see what he can do as there will be time for more turf races later if it did not work out here. Posted a bullet here last week, on the dirt. Three straight 100 SRF’s, and that Grade 1 win was the Jaipur about two months ago at BEL. If he can make this transition, he is the one to beat.
#8- Get Set Gone (Serenity Stables, ridden by Ru Gonzalez)- Showed excellent promise as a two year old, and that would ultimately mean that he was put on the TC trail. In a few races over a mile, Get Set Gone was not able to do much, and the trainer wisely called that off for him. Immediately after the preps, he went to AQU for the Grade 3 Bay Shore, at seven furlongs, and pulled off the win. His last start was the Grade 1 Grade Stephens at BEL at the beginning of June, and he won that race as well. Get Set Gone has, in fact, won his last four races that were sprints. This is what he does best, and he is ready to show that to this field, and especially those TC runners that may have gotten the better of him running longer, but now they are on his turf. Additionally, he gets a five pound weight allowance. I like him here, and feel he gets it done.
#9- Milford Sound (Mwn Racing, ridden by P Lopez)- Earlier in his career, you could say that Milford Sound struggled with his consistency, but he might be working that out. With three wins in his last four races, he’s on good form. However, in the last year, those are his only races. He had a ten month layoff prior to his last start, a $30.000 ungraded stake, that he won. I’m not sure that he is ready for the Crosby right now.
#10- Dangerfield (Mo Mentum Farm, ridden by J Stein)- This gelding went on a three race winning streak, starting in March in an allowance, and ending with the Grade 2 Triple Bend Stakes at SA over Memorial Day weekend. Just when you may have wanted to start feeling good about him, he pulled a complete no show in his last start, which was the Grade 2 Nerud at BEL on the fourth of July. If he wants more respect, he must make starts like that a thing of the past.
#11- A Beagle Named Boo (John Henry, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- Like Dangerfield, A Beagle Named Boo is also coming out of the Nerud, and wants to make it a race that he forgets as he was only one position better. You may remember him running here last year, coming from way off the pace to get up for fourth, and since then he has four wins, including one Grade 3. He’s working quite well, but has a lot in common with that horse starting right to his inside. We’ll see how he responds.
#12- Smokin Luka (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- A strong two year old season that saw him with the Grade 1 Champagne and then run third in the BC Juvenile had many excited about him this year. He’d run in several preps, and even won the Rebel, but in this barn, you have to be extra special to get into a TC race, and the hound wasn’t howling for Smokin Luka. Last month, ran in the mud at the OH Derby, and was fourth, so the trainer is going to cut back on his distance to see if that helps. It might, but he’s going against champion sprinters, here. I’m not putting him in my top four.
Prediction: 8-2-7-6
— NS
Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES
