The Oceanport Stakes – GIII
7/20/19
MTH Race 10 1 1/16M – Turf
Purse $150.000
Three Year Olds and Up
Only a field of six has been entered for this years running of the grade three Oceanport Stakes over this Monmouth Park turf course here on Haskell Stakes day. Only a field of six but there is some pretty good horses in here so let’s take a look at the field.
1. Name Drop (14-5-2-2 $858.010), trained by John Henry
And here is the first runner in the field right here and he is coming right back here to Monmouth after a last place finish in the grade one United Nations. He was outclassed and it was too far also I think. He has a lot better chance in here than he did last out for sure.
2. Duke Or Earl (28-9-4-3 $424.560), trained by Gdp Inc
Well this horse here will be making his first start on the turf in quite a while. His last race was in the grade Metropolitan Handicap where he ended up finishing ninth. It has been a while since he ran on the turf but he has five wins over the surface so I think he has a chance.
3. The Laffin Sniper (23-6-6-3 $568.790), trained by Diablo Diablo
This runner right here is coming into this race off quite a layoff as he has not been seen in about four months since a win in the grade two Muniz Memorial Handicap at Fair Grounds. He looks good in this spot but the question is if he is ready to run off of the layoff or not.
4. Sinister Sunset (23-5-5-3 $394.420), trained by Team 7 Illusions
And now to this horse right here who is coming into this spot off of a second place finish in the grade two Wise Dan at Churchill Downs. He ran pretty well that day and he seems to run way better when isn’t a rabbit for a stablemate. I think he has a decent chance to win this race.
5. Iguazu (11-2-5-1 $45.480), trained by High Voltage
Another one that is returning to Monmouth in back to back starts here but this horse only ran in the New Jersey bred Horn Handicap and he finished third in a four horse field. This is a jump up in class and I just don’t see him winning unless he runs his best race ever in here.
6. Mean Street (49-13-12-7 $1,276.990), trained by Nakamura Stables
The old veteran nine year old in the field but boy he is still going pretty strong at this age. His last two were not the best but he did win the grade three Thunder Road earlier this year. A bad post but I do think he has a chance to win if he gets a good trip.
Summary
A rather small field but still some quality runners in here no doubt. I really could see five of the six winning and I would not be that surprised with anyone of them winning. My top pick is going to be Sinister Sunset as he looks to be in good form. Good luck to all in the field.
4-3-6-2
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES
