KD Turf Sprint – Grade II [BC]
KD Race #5 6f Turf Graded Stake
Purse $2,000.000 For Three Year Olds And Upward.

1 Electric Blue Spankys Barn Dettori L 122 —

He may have won nine of his eleven races in routes, but we all know at HRP that routers can certainly cause the odd surprise in sprints and this one is certainly working like the type that could do that. The winner of the Shoemaker Mile he comes here as a grade one winner from the ace draw so must get respect even though the last time he ran in a sprint was 18 months ago. Generally, an on-speed runner whichever trip he goes the draw could help him hold a handy position without too much effort and he could be ready to go a big race for this huge purse which rivals anything the BC can do for sprinters.

2 Proud Cup Mb Stables Gutierrez Mario 122 —

The old draw monster has played his tricks again here with Mb getting gates 2,3 and 4 for their three runners. This one is the first of them and comes here after being claimed for just $14.000 at the start of the year and in fact running and winning for that same tag last time out. If you look at the form you wonder what the champion trainer can be thinking entering this one in a sprint of this magnitude but when you look at the sub 1.02 winning time he recorded in that claimer and the fact that he is out working the grade one winner inside him, you can certainly understand the entry. The question as to why he is here then is obvious, the question that he was run in a cheap claimer last time is not so obvious. This really is an entry from the mind of a genius that we won’t really be able to understand until this race is over.

3 Norski Raider Mb Stables Lopez P 122 —

A slightly more obvious entry from the owner as this five-year-old comes here on the back of a close second in the Connaught Cup where he led at this distance and was just worried out of it in the seventh furlong. He is a solid sprinting type who was at his peak last year when running third in the BC Turf Sprint and whilst he has taken a while to get near that form this year that last effort certainly was a good sign.
He is obviously not Drinkin Creepin but if that one goes off the boil, then he is certainly one that could take advantage.

4 Drinkin Creepin Mb Stables Velazquez J R 122 —

This is the horse of the moment which has looked virtually unbeatable in his seven races this year taking just about every good sprint worth winning and already holding the title of the shortest priced favorite for the BC. It is hard to see how he gets beat on form but when you consider that the claimer from the same stable is outworking him there does seem to be question marks, although how relevant they are to the result is in itself questionable as this one has never been an overly flashy worker. On pace where the trainer and the race engine like horses to be I cannot imagine him getting beat unless of course one of those random cards is played by HRP.
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5 Whoa Bo Maxmillion Farm Jimenez A 122 —

Took on Drinkin Creepin in the Jaipur and did really well to force him to pull out all the stops being beaten a half-length on the line. He strangely went back in the Connaught Cup last time after running on pace all season so that may just be a blip that won’t be repeated and if he is back to his best, he has every chance of pushing the favorite again today although he is two nil down in their meetings so far.

6 Bluesman Spankys Barn Gaffalione T 122 —

Third in the Jaipur two lengths behind Drinking Creepin he ran from the car park that day so can perhaps be forgiven that effort. Second beaten a neck in the BC Sprint last year he was looking good early in the year taking the GP Turf Sprint and the San Simeon but has been behind Drinking Creepin in his last two. There is maybe a length between the top six in this race so anything can happen, and I have always liked this seven-year-old who has been admirably consistent throughout his career.

7 Training Wheels Gdp Inc Rodriguez Jam 122 —

Beaten a neck by Drinkin Creepin in the Shakertown and a half length behind Bluesman in the GP Turf Sprint he ran a cracker last time to come with a late charge to win the Connaught Cup and just adds to this spider web of form that puts most of the field within a length of each other. By the time you work it all out one missed stride will be the difference between first and sixth and I really couldn’t tell you what the order will be when they cross the line. This five-year-old has every chance at his best, out of the six or seven that have raced each other all year he has probably the strongest finish and if they go crazy up front he could be the one arriving late.

8 King Of Prakith Lanfranco Stable Espinoza V 122 —

Oh, what a story this would be!!! Claimed for peanuts when third in a fair level claimer last time the new owner has taken 5 months to get this one back to the track and does it after they found a 1.09 flat six-furlong work at DMR late in August. I can’t even begin to find any way on God’s green earth how this one can win on form, BUT he is working as well if not better than all of them so just maybe this could be the story to end all stories!!!

9 Gorilla Glue Maxmillion Farm Lezcano J 122 —

A dirt sprinter running turf sprinter work times after just two runs in the past on turf and nothing to show for it. Another that will make for interesting viewing and a good old HRP yarn should he upset the established turf stars, it may look unlikely in the real world but here at HRP unlikely isn’t so unusual. Don’t get me wrong this is a good horse on dirt and the winner of the Runhappy this year and if they go hard up front then just maybe he can be finishing at the end and then it just takes a clear path for victory.

10 Operation Mongoose Acber Farms Hernandez R M 122 —

A five-year-old that has definitely had some of that five-year-old fairy dust and who can blame the owner for having a go in a race with this sort of prize. The winner of his last three at allowance level he has proven he is fast, proven he has improved, now it’s just a matter of how much and how fast. His works are thereabouts but he has been dealt a tough card by the draw monster.

11 Fire And Ice TwinTowersRacing Geroux F 122 —

It wouldn’t be a sprint without a TwinTowers entry that ran over eleven furlongs last time out. To be fair to him he last ran in a sprint at the end of last year and won it so maybe he has always been a sprinter and just needed this opportunity to prove himself. Wherever he finishes no other trainer in this game has had more winners that didn’t look like they could win before the race so write him off at your peril.

12 Grayte Agent Mo Mentum Farm Conner T 122 —

In the car park we find a four-year-old with undoubted ability, but this looks a tall order against some of the best turf sprinters this year. The advantage he has with this gate is that he should get some outside gate speed push and that may help him get to the front where he likes to be, but there is so much speed inside him that it certainly won’t be easy to clear them by a length and a tail to get over. I wouldn’t say a hard no but in a race of noses and necks he starts with a big disadvantage.

SUMMARY

The difference between the BC and this race is that in qualifying for the BC most of the horses will have been beaten by Drinking Creepin, but in this race we have a few unknowns that just might make this race more interesting than the BC.
Of course, on form Drinking Creepin has been dominant all year and must be the first choice with five others within a length of him all year to push him hard again.
But then we have horses like Gorilla Glue, Proud Cup, Electric Blue and King Of Prakith who would never make the field for the BC Turf Sprint but are here with real chances of upsetting the apple cart in a big way.

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES