The Inside Information (Grade 2)- $200.000 Purse
GP- For Fillies and Mares Four Years Old and Upward
Seven Furlongs on the Dirt
January 27, 2024

It’s not called the Pegasus F & M Sprint, but the Grade 2 stake from GP on Saturday is just about as appealing to win, as it offers a $200.000 purse and has been won by some true greats of the game. Blonde Dynamite won this race back in both 2007 and 2009, and it was won by Avery Island in 2012 as well as Grayte Crack more recently in 2020. It’s also been a great race for Mb Stables, as the trainer won four straight editions of the race from 2014 to 2017. Last year, Last Lady got the job done for Lindeman Prairie. She would go on to win the Vinery Madison during the spring and ran in the BC but was retired after the race. We’ll have nine heading to the starting gate for this year’s Inside Information. Here’s a look at them:

#1- Lucky Star (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by S Camacho)- Ran very well as a two-year-old and continued to get strong results early in 2023 for Maxmillion Farm to lay down $800.000 in May to acquire. So far, Lucky Star has not won while in the Maxmillion silks, but she has been second three times, including in her last start, the Grade 1 La Brea. That’s very good, but when considering the purchase price and the nomination fees paid, Maxmillion probably really wants to starting having some wins from her. Just beginning her four-year-old campaign, so she has plenty of time to start doing that.

#2- Absolupt (Ekli Stable, ridden by U Rispoli)- Making her graded stake debut here, after picking up five wins in thirteen races for her career thus far. She’s had some convincing wins at times, but also has that occasional disappointment (I won’t necessarily call them duds) that have probably derailed the trainer from trying her at this level sooner. The time has come for her to show what she is made of here, and she must show her good side.

#3- In Dreams (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by T Gaffalione)- This filly has done a little bit of everything, which is something that the trainer is not afraid to do with his horses. She’s been very inconsistent over her career, with four wins in fifteen starts, but when she is bad, she is very bad. Did not run well last month in similar race conditions here at the Grade 3 Sugar Swirl, but for a horse that is very hit and miss, that may not even matter. Probably a longshot on race day with high reward potential.

#4- Grandest Lady (La Canada Racehorses, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- The trainer is hoping we go from the Last Lady to the Grandest Lady on the list of the race’s winners, and this five-year-old mare should have a good shot. She is hot right now, with wins in three of her last four, including the Grade 3 Chillingworth Stakes (which was in a dead heat), but she has always been able to win, doing so in 11 of 24 career races. She’s won several stakes, but this would be her signature win to this point if she pulled it off.

#5- Sexy Angelina (Night Rider Stables, ridden by E J Zayas)- Night Rider draws a post right in the middle of the starting gate for this one and will be hoping Sexy Angelina can get back to where she was in September. It was then when she won Grade 3 Seaway Stakes, but her two starts since then simply leave you thinking “yikes!” She’s working well still, so there’s no reason to think she doesn’t have it anymore, but this six-year-old mare really needs to have a good run. Doesn’t have to win but has to look good in more than just name.

#6- Sweet T (Sbp Racing, ridden by P Husbands)- A lightly raced horse, but when she has been out there, she has gotten the job done. Out of her eight career races, she has three wins and has hit the board in seven of them. May have been a slow developer, but seemed to hit her best stride around the same time Sexy Angelina began to lose hers, in September. Won the Grade 3 Chillingworth Stakes in a dead heat with Grandest Lady, who she sees again, and had a solid third place effort in the Bessarabian Stakes. We’re just beginning to see what this horse is capable of, and she gets another good test here.

#7- Queen Mother (Smokey Stover, ridden by E Jaramillo)- After a successful career with Wood Duck Stables, this one would be sold in private sales for $600.000 in early October, a week after winning the Grade 2 Zenyatta Stakes. She’d make her debut with Smokey Stover a month later in the Grade 3 Chilukki where she ran third and within a length of the winner. Queen Mother has been idle since and enters her five-year-old campaign with the trainer having high hopes for a very successful year.

#8- Texas Holdem (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by Ru Silvera)- Ran on New Years Day at the Grade 3 Las Flores Stakes, and finished third in that, marking the fourth time in six races that he finished in that spot. His lone win over that stretch was on soft turf, against three others for the $150.000 Smart N Fancy. Since late 2022, Texas Holdem has been a horse that’s usually in the mix but simply has trouble picking up wins. Perhaps just needs a little bit of luck to be thrown her way.

#9- Devils Bride (Fractious, ridden by Mar Garcia)- We saw this one in the BC Fillies and Mares Sprint, although it would not be a good race for her. To get there, Devils Bride picked up a big win in the Grade 1 Test at SAR and also turned in a good third place effort in the Grade 2 Prioress. She’s raced once since the BC and rebounded from that in a big way by winning an optional claimer at FG. Sure, that’s a drop, but it’s always nice to see a win right after you don’t run well in the BC, and Devils Bride stepped up and got it. Worked well at SA and should be one of the top choices here.

Prediction: 4-9-7-6

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES