GP Mile (Grade 2)- $300.000 Purse
GP- For Four Year Olds and Upward
One Mile on the Dirt
March 30, 2019

As we gear up for the running of the FL Derby, we will have plenty of exciting racing on the undercard as well, and among that will be the 16th running of the GP Mile. The purse for the race has bounced around between different amounts over the years, but the present $300.000 is the most common purse for the race in its history. Highlighting the field is State Police, who returns to the action for the first time since winning the Pegasus World Cup here two months ago. He will have eight challengers to take down today, and they are well accomplished in their own right. The history of the race shows that it has been rather friendly for trainers who are not the biggest names in the game. You’ll see a few of them sprinkled in on the list, but let’s see if this trend continues. Three of the last five editions of the race were won by Grimley. With that, let us take a look at this field now!

#1- Charleys Agent (Mb Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- This is one the ever shrinking number of stakes that Mb Stables has not yet won. Typically we see Mb Stables drop a horse into a lower race as a confidence booster for the horse, but you have to feel that his last race, a $35.000 claimer, was also because the trainer needed a confidence boost in him. He won the race, so now he is upgraded from the claiming ranks and back into graded competition. His biggest wins came in April and May last year, including the PIM Special, so if he likes the spring time, he’s a good bet.

#2- Sonador (Night Rider Stables, ridden by Ro Maragh)- For the majority of Sonador’s career, he has raced in the lower levels, and been passed around for cheap prices amongst trainers. In December, Night Rider Stables picked him up via a $10.000 claim, but it would not just be more of the same race. Adds were redone, and it was off to SA for an allowance in February, and he won in an HRP-rout, by three lengths. Gets his favorite jockey for the race, and can be an interesting wild card here.

#3- Creepy Palace (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- The five year old continues to be very consistent. While the accolades of winning races like the Grade 3 General George in his last start, the Grade 3 Mr Prospector, or even running third in the BC Sprint, there is something else that impresses me the most about him. In 20 races, Creepy Palace has never finished outside of the top four, meaning D J C Racing Stables has always grabbed a piece of the purse. For that to happen 100% of the time in a five year old’s 20-race career is impressive, especially since he is running at higher levels.

#4- Steel Tunes (John Henry, ridden by A A Gallardo)- Early in his career, Steel Tunes put together a five race winning streak, most of which was before a private sale that sent the horse to John Henry from Smokey Stover. That streak saw him win a pair of Grade 3 events, which was most recently the OH Derby in June. The wins have not continued, but he has now been competing in stronger races, such as the PA Derby or the Forego Handicap. When in a Grade 1, his line is not one of his best, though he has been better in Grade 2’s and 3’s.

#5- State Police (Smokey Stover, ridden by R Bejarano)- This is one of the more respected horses in the game right now, and there is really no reason to doubt him as he heads into the race with two months of rest. We last saw him here, with Bejarano in the saddle, winning the Pegasus World Cup, but that’s not the only thing he’s done in the Smokey Stover silks. He’s put together four consecutive triple digit SRF’s, also winning the JC Gold Cup, a field that was loaded, and running second in the Pacific Classic. While he’s fine running a mile, perhaps the question here is there one in the field who’s wheelhouse he might be moving into, such as Creepy Palace?

#6- Kiss The Snake (Nakamura Stables, ridden by J Talamo)- Acquired at the end of 2017 for $200.000, this five year old Snakie gelding could use a win. He’s managed just one since the sale, coming in the Grade 3 Ali at KEE last April. For a while, he had still remained consistent, showing the ability to get a piece of the purse. Although recently, one can say the form has slipped a notch, but the two seventh place runs either represent being part of a loaded field (JC Gold Cup), or trying the grass. He liked being a lower weight in the Razorback Handicap, running second, and needs to back that up well here.

#7- Super Jack (Gdp Inc, ridden by J L Ortiz)- In his last six starts, Super Jack has been part of the exacta, with three wins and three runner ups in that stretch. The level of competition he faced in those races has shown some fluctuation, as it includes a small optional claimer, a NY-bred stake, but also the Grade 1 Clark Handicap. His last start also proved to be his first career triple digit SRF, in the Grade 3 Hal’s Hope. This is a good spot for him to be after the race, and the trainer is always a threat at GP.

#8- Superbourg (La Canada Racehorses, ridden by G Franco)- What a great job with this one by La Canada Racehorses, picking him up in the September 2018 auction for just a buck. That’s right, only $1.000, in the auction. He had run in small turf claimers up to the point, but La Canada saw something in him, changed around everything about him, and won three main track races going long in a row, first in an ungraded stake, then winning the Grade 3 Berkeley Handicap and Grade 2 San Antonio Stakes. The streak ended in his last race, the Pegasus World Cup, where he was 7th of 14, from post 14. Not bad for a $1.000 auction purchase.

#9- Reach For A Latte (Saratoga Stud, ridden by I Ortiz Jr)- Since being gelded last summer, Reach For A Latte has been running exceptionally well. There had been some underachievement in races like the SA Derby, but as a gelding he has been much better and showed that right away when he placed second in the Jones Stakes, a Grade 3. His four races since the snip have seen him place second or first in each, all at the graded level, and he finally got that win in his last start, the Grade 3 Hooper.

Prediction: 3-5-7-4

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES