Henry Championship – Grade II
SA   Race #5   1 1/4m   Turf   Graded Stake
Purse $200.000  For Three Year Olds And Upward.

1 Sandor Clegane, trained by Smithtown Stables
Has run as well as any four year olds this year, winning the Elusive Quality before a close up sixth in The Jaipur. His works are pretty good, but his form and his age are enough to put me off.

2 Bottoms Out, trained by Blushing Meadows
Took The Sullivan Stakes back in May and then run a fair race in the PEN Mile, which was a hot race. Since then he has won an overnight, and in his last start, ran a close second in The Cliffhanger. Being a three year old he will be right in this and the triple digit speed figures he achieved in that last race certainly suggest he is ready for a race of this nature.

3 March Madness, trained by La Rosa Stables
A grand old campaigner, he continues too run honest races. His win in the BEL Gold Cup was massive and a repeat of that run will see him go close in this race. His old legs dont go as quickly as they used to, but he is as honest as the day is long and will run his heart out as usual.

4 Still In Check, trained by Kopites
Claimed from Mb Stables after a nice win at DMR, he is certainly the right age, but may find this race a bit above his ability.

5 Rare Coincidence, trained by Mb Stables
Looks pretty nailed on here, if work times and form are anything to go by. Third in the PEN Mile, he then ran a close second in the BEL Derby, both of which were the hottest three year old turf races this year. He got compensation for those fine runs with an excellent win in the AP St Legar the time before last and then faced an impossible draw in the WO Mile last time out. Thrown into the lead from the wide gate speed push, he got run down late and finished last that day and will fare much better from todays draw. Looks the winner barring an HRPism.

6 Stormy Passing, trained by C.R.Racing
Another grand old campaigner, he got a great win in the Nijinsky before a battling third in the Sky Classic last time. He is a tough horse which should run a great race, but an extra two pound penalty plus the weight allowance for three year olds may see him battling for second.

7 Oliverstravels, trained by Running Farms
A decent overnight type, but the disadvantage of being a four year old and drawn wide may be too much.

SUMMARY
This really does look like Rare Coincidence whichever way you look. The three year olds have dominated these type of races and I dont see a change here. March Madness and Stormy Passing will keep him honest, and any of the other three year olds may, of course, improve by some miracle and win.

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES