The Test (Grade 1)- $500.000 Purse
SAR- For Fillies Three Years Old
Seven Furlongs on the Dirt
August 5, 2023

It’s Whitney Day at the Spa, but before we get into that race, the races on the undercard certainly deserve to have their chance to be highlighted. Among them is the 21st running of The Test, which is a long sprint for three-year-old fillies and has been a Grade 1 since inception. The beginning purse level for the race was $250.000 and would be increased to its present $500.000 level in 2012. Past winners of this race include the late Vania Alessandra, Lea, and Slckmoment Laga. In 2022, the race was won by Ifyerwokeyerajoke, for TwinTowersRacing. While she has continued to race in a competitive manner, she has not made a return trip to the winner’s circle. We saw her here about ten days ago for the Grade 2 Honorable Miss Handicap, and she ran a solid third, so we should not write her off yet and she might actually get offended if you do. This year, the gate will be full as twelve look to be the next name to be added to the winner’s list, and this is an excellent field, overall. Just like it should be! Let’s meet those who’ll be taking part!

#1- Siouxbiscuit (Mb Stables, ridden by Ru Silvera)- Looked promising at the start of the year, winning the Grade 3 Forward Gal Stakes in February, and later narrowly missing out on wins in both the Grade 3 Fantasy and Grade 2 Eight Belles. In each of those, she was second by a neck. While she was seeming destined for better as the year moved on, her progress has stalled over her last two, including a disappointing finish in the Acorn and cutting back her distance in the Victory Ride didn’t help. She’s getting another chance, but needs to run better than those last two, for sure.

#2- Lucky Star (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by A Jimenez)- A strong two-year-old season saw her win the Spinaway here last year, and she would end up running in the BC Juvenile Fillies later in the fall. That did not go well, but it didn’t affect her, as she bounced back by winning the Grade 2 Demoiselle then placing second in the Alexandra after that. She would not run in the KYO and was instead in the Grade 2 Edgewood that same day and won. Maxmillion Farm liked what he saw and put down $800.000 to purchase her later in May. Made her debut in her new silks in the DEL Oaks and was second. Cuts back on her distance a bit here, but that won’t be an issue.

#3- Spring Street (High Voltage, ridden by Mario Gutierrez)- Certainly has a lot of experience running against Siouxbiscuit. Ran second to that one in the Forward Gal in February, and also was in the Fantasy. That’s not a highlight for Spring Street, but she bounced back perfectly in the Eight Belles, beating her budding rival at the rival. They would then run against one another in the Acorn, but neither had a good day. Here they are again, and both have certainly shown their ability to win the race. For Spring Street, yes, two of her last three starts are poor, but when running seven furlongs, she is much better, and I expect to see that version of her in this race.

#4- Sigatoka (Bears Stable, ridden by P Husbands)- Picked up for just $1.780 in the December auction, and she has been perfect ever since. It’s a five-race winning streak now for Sigatoka, a run that began modestly at FON before proving that she can beat some of the best fillies out there in the Grade 2 Great Lady M at LA last month. In that, she registered an SRF of 101, and is certainly ready for the biggest test of her career here in The Test. It’s always nice to see these smaller purchases doing well, proving that you don’t have to spend $800.000 to end up with a good one.

#5- Toppifiant (Our Athletes, ridden by F Geroux)- After struggling in her debut, Toppifiant took care of business against PA-breds, including winning the $200.000 Shamrock Rose Stakes. That sent her into unrestricted company and was a half-length shy of getting wins in both the Davona Dale and the GP Oaks. Following that, she struggled in the Eight Belles, which was a bit of a surprise for what was the race’s post-time favorite. Her last race was a win in allowance at CD that gets her another chance to run against this type of field. She sees a few here that she saw in the Eight Belles, so can’t have a letdown.

#6- Parade Leader (Fractious, ridden by M Franco)- Things seem to be going very well for Fractious right now, and he will be sending three to the starting gate in the Test. Parade Leader may be the best of the trio, and is a horse that is running very well currently. She’s won three of her last four and four of her last six, with her most recent race seeing her come out on top in the Grade 3 Victory Ride at BEL. Even the races that she did not win in that stretch, she was only a quarter length behind the winner, where running third in the Eight Belles was one of them.

#7- Bay The Lady (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- In January, Mb Stables picked this one up in a $50.000 claimer, and he nearly turned her into a KYO winner. Between the claim, and that race, she would win the $100.000 Cicada at AQU, before proving that she could run long by winning the Grade 1 Ashland. The success did not stop there, as she would end up running third in the KYO, but something seemed to happen to her after that race. Bay The Lady was a non-factor in the Acorn and has been on the shelf for a couple months. This is her first race since then, and the cut in distance is a little noteworthy. It’s likely that is only because Mb Stables has a deep stable and has others, he wants to target longer distances with now.

#8- Sunsweet Star (Smokey Stover, ridden by L Saez)- This filly will be making her graded stake debut after showing some potential against NY-Breds in her last three starts. As of now, she is a winner of two out of seven, both coming in overnights towards the start of her career. In April, she was entered into the $200.000 Park Avenue, and was third. Comes out of a second place run in the Niagara at FL in her last start. This truly will be a test for Sunsweet Star, and while I would never rule her out, I will pass on her here.

#9- Devils Bride (Fractious, ridden by A Cedillo)- Her fourteen starts are more than anyone has made in this field, and she has been to the winner’s circle three times. Two starts ago, she got what would be considered her signature win to this point as she captured the $175.000 Leslies Lady Stakes at CD on a sloppy track. That sent her to the Victory Ride, a race won by her stablemate, Parade Leader, but she was unable to cash a check in it. I would prefer that stablemate to her here as well, but I do like the general consistency that this filly shows.

#10- Black Moon Concerto (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by D Davis)- After having her moments as a two-year-old, including winning the $100.000 Arnaz Stakes, Black Moon Concerto has been slow to get going as a three-year-old. She struggled quite a bit in a pair of Grade 2’s earlier this year, with double digit finishes in each of them. However, she has indeed started to get going now. With the trainer taking a step back with her, Black Moon Concerto scored back-to-back third place two-year-old in optional claimers at CD. Both were solid efforts, but still will need to build on that to top this field.

#11- Empire Sunset (Fractious, ridden by D E Centeno)- Our final entry from Fractious in the field, and a horse that has had several opportunities to earn a stake victory. She was close a couple of times, but each of those races were as a two-year-old. This year, Empire Sunset hasn’t been poor, but failed to pick up a check in the both the Ashland and Santa Ysabel before a poor performance in the Eight Belles. Similar to Black Moon Concerto, scaling her back to overnights has helped recently, and now she will get another chance against this type of field.

#12- White Russian (Axeman, ridden by S Elliott)- It won’t be her stake debut, but it’s been a while. In October, she ran in the $50.000 The Fantasy (as a maiden), not to be confused with the Grade 3 of the same name at OP. In that race, she failed to beat anyone, and took three more tries to break her maiden after it. She’s now won three straight and Axeman is not only giving her another chance at a stake but is clearly swinging for the fences by having that race be The Test. The post draw only added to the challenge.

Prediction: 6-3-2-7

— NS

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES