SUN Oaks (KYO)- $200.000 Purse
SUN- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
March 24, 2019
The chase for the KYO seems to be getting less attention right now as this 50 point KYO prep draws just a field of six, and all but one horse in this field currently have zero KYO points. The one with points, has two. Last year, we had eleven go to gate for this race, and the winner then was Bora Bora, for Smokey Stover. The Hardline filly would not race in the KYO, however, and made just two starts afterwards before she was retired. 2017 winner, Musical Treat, did run in the KYO, but did not hit the board. In the 2017 SUN Oaks, Mb Stables swept the top three positions, though he and everyone else in the field has just one entry here today. Let’s take a look!
#1- Golden Hour (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- In six starts, she’s won twice with her most golden triumph being the $100.000 Glorious Song at DMR. Interestingly, that makes her the only horse in this field who has even won a stake heading into the race. I would have liked to have seen a win in her last start, but she’s had a couple months to think about it.
#2- Deliberate Miss (Mb Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- Struggled to break her maiden with Our Athletes while running in FL-bred races, though finished fourth twice. Picked up by Mb Stables for $100.000 in private sales in February, and lo and behold, she finally got the win, as she just needed to go a little longer. This is a wide open field, so certainly she can step up here.
#3- Fair On Friday (Gdp Inc, ridden by E J Wilson)- Three races, one win. This Black Friday filly has spent her whole career running with the PA-bred condition, so you can say she is following a similar path to get here as did Deliberate Miss, only without all of the second place finishes and the private sales transaction. While the speed figure doesn’t impress all that much, looking at the rest of the field shows its right there with the others, so why not.
#4- Sweet Sauce (Rampage Stable, ridden by J Rosario)- In a race of up and coming horses, and knowing one is going to get 50 points, there’s a bit of a rooting interest here with Sweet Sauce as the trainer would love to be a part of the KYO instead of seeing, no offense, the above and below familiar faces who have other options. Broke her maiden in her last start and looked sharp, normally you’d be concerned about the jump in class, but then you realize pretty much everyone else in here is doing it, too.
#5- Commanding Lady (Estero Farms, ridden by R Bejarano)- Yet another lightly raced horse, having gone to post just three times, with one win. She didn’t show much with First Class Stable, but after arriving at Estero Farms, in a $20.000 private sale, she’s responded nicely to a new set of adds. Looks no more or no less capable then the others here.
#6- Gingerandmaryann (Nakamura Stables, ridden by J Talamo)- This is the one who has KYO points, picking up two when she finished third in the Grade 1 Frizette last October at BEL. However, she struggled mightily in her start after that, then ran second in an optional claimer in her last start. She has experience in her favor, though the work times don’t stand out in comparison to the others.
Prediction: 4-2-5-1
— NS
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
