Star Shoots ($125.000 Purse)
WO- For Fillies Three Years Old
Six Furlongs on the Dirt
April 30, 2022
The Star Shoots is an ungraded stake up north for three year old fillies that will be running for the 12th time. It first appeared on the schedule in 2009, but took a couple years off before resurfacing in 2012. Since then, it has been contested on a yearly basis. The past winnerboard does not show a ton of big names, but there are a couple, including 2018 winner Are We Dreamin, so while this race is run for a smaller purse, it’s winners have shown up in much bigger races, too. A horse with the simple name of Wow was the winner last year, for D J C Racing Stables, and she has not really taken the next step, but she is active and riding a winning streak, so maybe she will be soon. Let’s look at those hoping to wow us this year!
#1- No Pain (Nj Vets, ridden by A A Gallardo)- A winner of two races in her five starts thus far, and her December 2021 Sandpiper Stakes victory means she has to carry to more pounds than everyone else in the field. Didn’t show much in her last race, despite placing third, and it looks like the adds are being changed up just a little bit. We have seen that help a lot of horses, and for No Pain to win this race, she will have to be the next example of that.
#2- Broomstick Storm (Arindel, ridden by D Moran)- In seven races, this filly has just her maiden win to speak of, but she has been second a total of four times. Among them are a pair of ungraded stakes, the Gasparilla, and the Stonehedge Sophomore Fillies. This race is a little shorter than them, but it’s really not a whole lot different. Perhaps six furlongs instead of seven will be better for her, too.
#3- Genghis Happened (Arindel, ridden by S Ryan)- Wins have been happening for this one, as the second of two Arindel runners has won four of ten. Two of them have come right here, as the ON-bred has spent half her career running with the statebred condition. She’s made a few stake starts, but none of them are her wins, and she has not hit the board in any of them, either. Seems too good to keep doing that.
#4- Fire (Mo Momentum Farm, ridden by P Husbands)- Looking at the past winners of this race, there is no one better in this field to be the next addition to the list. In 2020, the race was won by So Hot. In 2021, by Wow. So, in 2022, by Fire? It fits, perfectly. Ok, maybe No Pain is a good fit too, but not quite as good. As for the horse, she’s coming off a win in an optional claimer here just a couple weeks ago and doesn’t get a lot of time to rest. But, rest can be overrated.
#5- Soul Rebel (Rousee, ridden by J Stein)- Broke her maiden in second career start, but her two races that came after it were quite disappointing. She would be seventh in each of them, missing by five lengths in both of the races after setting the pace. Those were at a least a mile, so cutting back on her distance could be good for her. It would not surprise me at all to also see a tactical adjustment on her so she does not shoot out to the front.
#6- Tragedy And Hope (Nakamura Stables, ridden by K Kimura)- Concluding our small field is this Telling Ya filly that makes her stake debut. She has made six starts so far, and won two of them. That second win was at a mile at SA, but she will be cutting back on her distance here. Unlike Soul Rebel, it’s not a case of a pacesetter tiring in longer races, however. Tragedy And Hope has been working mostly at a mile lately so hopefully she is ready for the wire to show up after six.
Prediction: 2-4-3-1
— NS
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
