Makers Mark Mile – Grade I
KEE Race #2 1m Turf Graded Stake
Purse $600.000 For Four Year Olds And Upward.

1 Winter Book Fractious Lopez P 123 —

This horse has put up some fine performances in its career so far winning last year’s grade one HOL Derby and running well in a host of other top races. His seasonal debut produced a scintillating win at overnight level, and he was warmly fancied to run a big race in the Kilroe Mile last time. Sadly, for him at least, the rains came, and he paddled his way round into fifth with a fairly non-descript effort. I guess the question is, was it the wet track or the mile that didn’t suit? He certainly stays further but has run well enough at the mile to put it down to the weather. A strong recent work both on dirt and turf suggest we may see him running much better today.

2 Albaquirky Santan Stables Geroux F 123 —

Produced an electric turn of foot to win the Kilroe in the wet last time and had been a champion sprinter last season so things are looking really nice for the trainer as they look for early qualification into the BC Mile. The track conditions were suitable that day and I don’t think he will find it so easy to beat Winter Book on a dry track but this six-year-old has nothing left to prove and he would have a great chance rain or shine.

3 Atomic Eclipse Spankys Barn Gaffalione T 123 —

The reigning BC Mile Champion he has been well rested since that huge performance and comes here very fresh. His works say he is ready to run his race though and at age seven he knows what to do on the big occasions. You would have to say his win in the BC Mile was a bit of a surprise, but he was suited by a suicidal pace and came swooping wide and late that day. His running style will always be problematic but there are plenty of scenario’s that see him winning here and you cannot write him off even if it looks like he may need the run.

4 Bigmikesbluedress TwinTowersRacing Cedillo A 123 —

The trainer just loves throwing them in the deep end and it doesn’t get much deeper than this field. He won an allowance last year in a sub 1.33 time and won the Hill Prince very nicely so he is certainly one that can cause an upset especially when you note his last work on the dirt which would have been competitive in any race.

5 King Luka Night Rider Stables Centeno D E 123 —

With only two wins from twenty starts you would have to say he looks out of his depth here but in good old HRP style he threw a 1.34 flat work for this trip in February and that is pretty much better than anything in this field. Whilst the works can be very confusing these days as they don’t seem to correlate to performance like they once did you have to take notice when they happen. I would say the only thing that says he can win is that one work, but I have seen plenty of races won with exactly that so write him off at your peril.

6 Rogerius Catalinus Rock Creek Davis D 123 —

A prolific winner in lesser company and a strong worker he certainly deserves a shot at this sort of race, but this one has come up very strong and he may find it too tough.

7 Electric Blue Spankys Barn Dettori L 123 —

Like a lot of these good older horses when you look back at works and form it can seem almost random that they turn out to be as good as this and most of the time their improvement comes when you are least expecting it. This time last year he was running in a claimer and now he is a grade three winner working superstar times and as a six-year-old seems to be improving like a two-year-old. His form figures will need to take a step up to win this, but the HRP signs are there that this is one of those diamonds that you find in the rough.

8 Jacks Courage Mb Stables Gutierrez Mario 123 —

After winning the Travers last year he ran a cracker to be a close fourth in the BC Classic, so it has been a bit surprising to see the champion trainer change tack with him and race him on the turf in his last three. Placing twice at grade one tells us that he is just as good on the grass as he was on the dirt so he must once again be a big winning chance although he does have a length or two to find with Albaquirky on their Kilroe Mile run.

9 Commerce D J C Racing Stables Pennington F 123 —

This horse has always been an impressive worker, but he hasn’t always performed up to his works. A new trainer may hold the key for him as he tackles his biggest assignment ever and let’s face it, he wouldn’t be the first $20.000 claim to win a grade one.

10 Sioux Arrival High Voltage Velazquez J R 123 —

Won the DMR Derby last year very impressively but struggled to repeat for the rest of last year. He did however look improved when he took the Canadian Turf last time out and has thrown some impressive works before and since. The draw doesn’t suit his running style which is a concern today but there are a good few ticks in boxes here and I would expect a strong show.

11 Oh Brother Spankys Barn Saez L 123 —

Out in the car park we find Oh Brother, a very nice sort who on his best day is certainly a major contender. Close enough to the main contenders in the Kilroe Mile he will need some race engine luck from the draw, but if he gets it, there is no reason he won’t be fighting out the finish.

SUMMARY

This is a very hot mile here and there are plenty of chances. On works you have to like Sioux Arrival, Oh Brother, Electric Blue and King Luka, but their strong efforts on the gallops do not reflect the form of Albaquirky, Winter Book, Jacks Courage and Atomic Eclipse. So, which do we look at first? Well in the past I would have gone with the works, but the whole works to form situation has got very muddled since the new race engine, so it is hard to really work out what those fast workers will do when faced with grade ones.
So very tentatively, I am going for Albaquirky to beat Jacks Courage with maybe Electric Blue being the best of the “late Blommers”.

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES