Thors Echo Stakes ($100.000 Purse)
SA- For Three Year Olds and Upward Foaled In CA
Six Furlongs on the Dirt
June 12, 2021

For the sixth time, the Thors Echo Stakes will be held at SA, and this year’s event will send a field of ten Californians a total of six furlongs on the main track. It was won last year by the late Justin Credible, who was seven at the time. It proved to be his last career win, and he raced for the final time this April. Previews will be abbreviated from me this weekend, but recaps should be normal. Here’s the field!

#1- Cracked Plan (Gdp Inc, ridden by Ru Gonzalez)- Runs in a stake for the first time after three consecutive runner up finishes. Fared well in his last start, last month, which was his turf debut, but the trainer is sending him back to the main track here.

#2- Vamos (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by J J Hernandez)- Has not done a whole lot to be excited about yet, and runs in a stake for the first time. It comes after running third in a $50.000 claimer at CD last month. Seems to do a good job hitting the board, but faces his toughest company here.

#3- Barbary Appeal (Axeman, ridden by T J Pereira)- This is a veteran of the track, and will make his 37th career start here. Most of them recently have been in claimers, but after a good run of finishing in the money, Axeman is going to see what this one time Grade 1 participant can do here.

#4- Daddys Operation (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by Mario Gutierrez)- Ran last month at CD on the KYD undercard, but failed to beat any of his rivals in an allowance. Looks a little inconsistent, but if you go by patterns, he is due to run a big one here.

#5- Apollo Mission (Allinthegate, ridden by T McCarthy)- Gelding this one in late August has proven to be the right decision, as since that day, he has won four of his last five, and prior to that the results were quite subpar. If he wins here, it would be his fourth in a row, but this isn’t TUP. Looked good at TUP, though. So don’t discount that.

#6- Call Me Plume (Hippyheart, ridden by V Espinoza)- Claimed by the trainer last summer for $18.000, and has gradually increased his level of competition. His last race was right here in an allowance, and he topped a field of five. I think he’s ready to roll here and should be a factor.

#7- Absolute Immunity (Winning Link Stables, ridden by A Cedillo)- He’s had a few stake attempts in his career, but thus far a third place showing in a $65.000 stake at DMR is the highlight of it. Otherwise, he knows how to win in overnights, so he is certainly on the cusp of adding a stake win to his resume.

#8- Mr Charming (Fractious, ridden by F Prat)- Makes his first start with Fractious after the new trainer claimed him for $50.000. Mr Charming has hit the board in 15 of his 21 starts, and you have to go back to October 2019 to find the last time he was not in the top four. This could prove to be an excellent pick up for him, over the long term.

#9- Grand Final (First Flight Stable, ridden by J Pyfer)- Another horse that has not done much as of yet in his career, but he is still lightly raced. Second at PRX in his last start, a $12.500 claimer on the grass, and this will only be his second dirt start.

#10- Game Cent (Emerald Racing Inc, ridden by M E Smith)- This six year old gelding makes his 36th start, and hopes for win twelve. He’s another one of the horses in here that has been very good at getting a top three finish, and did win an ungraded stake in 2019. That year also saw him appear at the graded level, including the Grade 1 CD.

Prediction: 8-3-10-5

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded