The Fleet Sprint Handicap – Grade III
OP Race #1 6f Dirt Graded Stake
Purse $500.000 For Four Year Olds And Upward.
1 Hollywood Eclipse Nakamura Stables Fuentes Ru
Any horse has to be taken seriously from this stable at the moment and especially one that works 1.36 flat for the mile and 1.10 and 1 for six furlongs. As is usually the case these days his form doesn’t really reflect those work times but despite only 4 wins from 24 efforts he must be given a winning chance by default. He ran well to be beaten less than a length in the Fool Handicap last time but in true HRP style that equates to just a sixth place finish, The draw is good and he is in the middle of what is laughingly called a handicap so if your pin picks him then he has a good a chance as anything.
2 Harleys Hope TwinTowersRacing Centeno D E
A smidgen in front of Hollywood Eclipse in the Fools handicap it will again be close at the same handicap weights, flip a coin to pick between these two.
3 Its A Laugher Maxmillion Farm Velazquez J R
Comes back to six furlongs after going a mile plus in his last four. The form is irrelevant for this race so look no further than the 1.10 flat work he put in just over a week ago.
4 Cardinal Direction D J C Racing Stables Court J K
Never gets beaten far at the highest level including fifth beaten a length in the BC Sprint, sixth beaten a length in the Malibu and fourth beaten two lengths in the GP Mile last time. With a bit of luck he could get some reward this time but luck doesn’t seem to be on his side too much.
5 Ornate Team 7 Illusions Beschizza A
The great HRP story saw this one beaten just a head in the Fools Handicap after a maiden win in the race before. He goes up 2Lb for some reason for that defeat where others just a little bit behind stay where they are. Weighted to fall over the line in a heap with everything else.
6 Fahrenheit Mb Stables Bejarano R
Seems to have got back to his best after failing in the BC Sprint last year winning two nice overnights so far this season and looking as sharp as a tack.
7 Junior Maxmillion Farm Gryder A T
Ran some good races in top company last year most notably a strong second in the Vanderbilt Handicap. He went fast to win an allowance at GP on seasonal debut and would imagine he would map right upsides everything else in this very tight race.
8 Black Scorpion John Henry Desormeaux K J
A nose second in the Crosby last year he has been disappointing since moving to this stable. To be fair he seems to be getting the raw end of the random draw maker which hasn’t seemed so random in his case but he has ability and whilst he wont be among the favorites is not more than some lucky breaks off the money.
9 Bodivo Our Athletes Talamo J
Has disappointed a little when upped to this sort of level before but a 57 and 3 5 furlong work last time suggests it only needs a little luck to see her in the finish. Luck wasn’t on her side when the draws were announced though and its tough seeing her win.
10 Charleys Agent John Henry Gaffalione T
In the clump of horses that made up the first 6 in the Fools Handicap he goes up a pound but should once again finish in that clump. Bought for just ten dollars he has already paid that back and may add to that today.
11 Chiozza Spankys Barn Prat F
Has a lot of seconds to his name recently in a lower grade. However a 57 and 3 five furlong work and the fact that there isn’t any class system at HRP puts this one right in the heap with everything else. The draw will be tough for a horse that likes to stalk so luck as usual may be the most important requirement.
SUMMARY
I must apologize for my rather thin write up for this race but it really could be an 11 horse dead heat and it was tough to write anything different about each individual horse. If you want a winner from me its simple, box up 11 horses because the winner will be the one that wins the AI lottery.
Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES
