Risen Star Stakes – Grade II [KYD]
1 1/8 Mile Dirt Graded Stake Purse $500.000 Three-Year-Olds. At FG
Risen Star Stakes has three starters that already have their ticket to the KYD, and those three take up three of the top six positions on the handicap, making the chances for the other runners less at getting that elusive win and you’re in spot. At the top of my handicap is one of the already qualified, Painted Ice which just won the Grade III Lecomte Stakes with Strike sandwiched between another already qualified, People Batty, then Flop looking for his chance. Here’s the field:
Horse Owner Odds SRF
Painted Ice Alydar Stables *3-1 97
Strike D J C Racing Stables 7-2 97
People Batty Night Rider Stables 9-2 90
Flop Mb Stables 4-1 94
Chasing Magic Mb Stables 5-1 96
Need Cash Now Mb Stables 5-1 95
Political Star Big Guns Stables 6-1 95
Wizardly Barcelona Farms 8-1 89
Wally Gator Rock Creek 10-1 93
Bold Intruder The Sidley Stud 12-1 90
Wine Spectator Big Guns Stables 20-1 87
Forward Facing Pan Farms 20 1 87
ae- People Are Simmer Down Stable 30 1
Chasing Magic proved himself last year a mostly successful deep closer with narrow losses in the $225.000 Bashford Manor, the Grade III Best Pal Stakes and the Grade I DMR Futurity, then topped it off with a spectacular win in the $100.000 Gun Runner to grab a ticket to the KYD. His start to the new year went a little sour when his rockets fired too late in the Grade III Lecomte Stakes at FG.
2 Need Cash Now Mb Stables 95
Big year for Need Cash Now after Mb Stables picked him up from Luz International for $200.000 after his maiden win. From there he ran second in the Grade I Hopeful, the Grade I Champagne and the BC Juvenile. He started off this year with a win in the seven-furlong $125.000 Pasco Stakes, so he looks sharp after stubbing his toe in the Grade II LA Futurity.
3 Bold Intruder The Sidley Stud 90
Bold Intruder spent the first five races of his career in State restricted sprint races, running second in the $100.000 Aspirant Stakes before stretching out to win the one mile $200.000 Sleepy Hollow at AQU. However, that’s where the good news ends, as he has lost his last two races and has yet to have even been tried at Graded level.
4 Wizardly Barcelona Farms 89
Just three races for Wizardly, but impressive results. He won his second start in a DED maiden by a handy two-lengths. That was in November. In December, he was placed in the Grade II LA Futurity where he came into the stretch tenth lengths behind and finished second beaten only a length. That’s it. That’s all we have. But it sure says plenty. If he is sitting back there in the stable continuing to grow into a monster, this race could be his.
5 Political Star Big Guns Stables 95
Political Star needed some distance to break his maiden, but when he got a mile at DMR, he romped by two lengths. After a variety of stakes attempts, he scored a big win in the $150.000 Jerome at AQU. He has yet to prove himself at Graded level, but he’s come to the right place to do that.
6 Wally Gator Rock Creek 93
Wally Gator’s third win was the restricted $200.000 FL Sire Stakes – Affirmed at GP. After that came Graded stakes racing and that was that. He’s going to have to step up to this level to be ready for the Derby.
Forward Facing had only four races when auctioned by Fractious for $277.010 in December. After that, one try produce a third in a SA allowance race. Before being auctioned, he won the restricted sprint $100.000 FL Sire Stakes – Fager at GP.
8 Wine Spectator Big Guns Stables 87
High hopes are riding on this maiden as he was scratched out of the Grade III Lewis Stakes at SA to prefer this race at five times the purse. Wine Spectator has had only four races, but only two against maidens. The main reason for the belief in him is his nose loss second in the $225.000 Brown at CD. That’s a pretty spectacular maiden. He’s a deep closer, though and subject to those inconsistencies and his most recent race was in an allowance race at SA where his close fell short by two-lengths at third. It should be a tough run for him, but as memory serves me HRP was high on him.
9 Strike D J C Racing Stables 97
Only four races for lightly raced Strike, but impressively done with a deep closing third in the Grade III Lecomte Stakes only a head behind today’s race favourite Painted Ice. He won his two races leading up to that race, both NY restricted events, one however, the $500.000 NY Stallion Series – Great White Way at AQU.
10 Flop Mb Stables 94
Flop has been brilliant right from the start where he won at first asking at TUP. He has never been out of the money in his seven starts winning four of them. Interestingly, Dan has brought him along cautiously and gently in both race distances and levels. The result is an excellently prepared Derby contender that could well be favourite for this race. After winning back-to-back State restricted stakes races in the $100.000 Frost King Stakes and the $250.000 Coronation Futurity, he ran third in the $250.000 Smarty Jones at OP giving him everything except graded experience for this race.
11 Painted Ice Alydar Stables 97
It looks like it takes Painted Ice a race to get used to his surroundings, after which he’s a terror. By that, I mean he handled the frightening aspect of racing poorly by running dead last wire-to-wire in his debut at LS but then stepped up to SAR and scored a nice win in a pricey maiden. Then, he followed that by running last in the Grade I Champagne at AQU. He quickly got used to his surroundings with a second in the Grade II KY Jockey Club at CD, missing that ticket to the Derby by a half-length. Totally confident of his surroundings now, he headed to FG for the Grade III Lecomte Stakes where he won his ticket to the KYD. So, it looks like the main reason he is here is the Risen Star’s hefty purse.
12 People Batty Night Rider Stables 90
People Batty is also already qualified for the KYD thanks to his most recent run, a win in the Grade II LA Futurity. Prior to that, there wasn’t much to say that he was headed that way except a three-length romp the race before the Futurity in an FL allowance race. So now he gets to run up to Derby Day proving how good he is.
ae-13 People Are Simmer Down Stable If he gets in, People Are should be an interesting study. Six starts, never worse than second. Recently claimed for $4.000. Won his most recent race, a $10.000 claiming race, by a whopping twelve lengths. Should be outclassed.
Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES