CC Distaff Dash- $110.000 Purse
GP- For Fillies and Mares Three Years Old and Upward
Have started for claiming price of $25.000 or less since 1/1/14
Five Furlongs on the Turf
December 5, 2015
Female turf sprinters will get their chance to shine in the CC series this weekend for the first time in the inaugural running of the CC Distaff Dash. It is part of what should be a great day of racing down at GP, and it’s good to see all of these races be able to draw with decent sized fields. Hambletonian Stable and Night Rider Stables have played a big part this year in helping all these races get a worthwhile number of runners, so we thank them for their commitment to these races and overall interest in making them be successful. There are six going to the gate in the CC Distaff Dash, half of which come from Hambletonian Stable. Let us meet his entries, as well as the other three for this race!
#1- Bombshell (Second Chance Farms, ridden by J Bravo)- This three year old filly by the late Kings Jester has had a strong season, winning three of the eight races in which she has competed in. These have been strong races as well, such as the $100.000 Wild Applause in June. The horse that finished second in that? Altered Skeleton, who recently finished second in the BC Fillies and Mares Turf. She’s also been victorious in a high level allowance at WO. The problem here is the distance. Both of those races saw her go at least seven furlongs. Other then her debut race, she has never raced this short of a distance, and I just don’t have a ton of confidence that she can beat a couple in here that are more in tune to short sprinting. She did recently work well at CD, however, and should still be in the mix until the end.
#2- Pharmakeia (Hambletonian Stable, ridden by Alan Garcia)- Recently claimed by Hambletonian Stable for just $7.500 from Thinken Stables, Pharmakeia will make her debut running in her new silks. She has shown the ability to be near the front, with three wins and three places in her last six starts, all while running at this type of distance. If we go back on her past performances a little bit, you will see that she does have some stake experience, with a third place running last year in a race for TX-breds. Even though it was over a year ago, it shows that she’s been highly regarded before in regards to her perceived talent level. Perhaps she is finally starting to come in to her own right now, and I do like how she recently worked on this track, WIC or not. Pharmakeia should be very competitive in this race.
#3- Kruzin Hot (Axeman, ridden by G L Olguin)- As long as Kruzin Hot takes the turf okay, she looks to be the one to beat in this race. That is a fair question mark, however, as eleven of her twelve races have been on the dirt. When she did run on the turf , she defeated three rivals in a $40.000 claimer. On the main track, she’s been successful with a pair of second place finishes in ungraded stakes over the summer. In August, she just missed in a photo at FL’s Niagara Stakes, and then a month later was beaten in the Casino Stakes by only the red-hot Grey Wind (who you saw in the BC Fillies and Mares Sprint last month). She’s won her two races since, and seems poised to add her signature win to her resume. That could be here. As long as she likes the grass.
#4- Baloncesto (Hambletonian Stable, ridden by Jef Sanchez)- The three year old filly will be making the eighth start of her career in this race, and looks to make a move forward as she comes off a career high SRF number of 93. That came in a second place effort in a starter allowance at RP last month. While the winner in that race is now serving as a broodmare, Baloncesto still may yet to reach her peak. The question mark on her is whether that was a fluke performance or not. I do not think it was, but other races on her past performances are not as impressive, so Baloncesto will need to be able to build off that race and cannot take a step back here.
#5- Laffin All The Way (Night Rider Stables, ridden by P Lopez)- At the start of her career, this filly saw dome top flight competition, as the prior trainer tried to get her into the KYO, competing in the $100.000 Busher and then the $200.000 SUN Oaks. However, those races proved to not be her cup of tea. At a fitting time of year, Laffin All The Way was claimed on the day after Christmas by her current trainer, who changed up the type of races she was competing in. Back to sprints, the filly won her first three races while running in the Night Rider colors, two of which were five furlong turf events. Most recently, she is coming off the race that ended that winning streak, a third place run in the four-horse Grable Stakes for CA-breds. She has the ability to win this, and should be one of the top choices.
#6- Secret Testimony (Hambletonian Stable, ridden by J R Leparoux)- The trainer finishes off having all the even numbers in this race with this three year old Lawyer Jake filly. She has flashed some potential this year as well, though has only made one trip to the winners circle. That was a nice trip, though, as it came in the $100.000 LA Legends Mademoiselle on the fourth of July at EVD. She hasn’t been on the turf all that much, though is coming off a good run in her most recent outing, which was also at this distance. A recent work definitely shows that she is ready to run.
Prediction: 3-5-1-6
— NS
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
