The Hillsborough Stakes – Grade II
TAM Race #13 1 1/8m Turf Graded Stake
Purse $225.000 For Fillies And Mares Four Years Old And Upward.

1 Techfluence High The Sidley Stud Moore R L 122 —

The depth in this race is very deep so this very good filly faces a tough task even with the ace draw. The winner of the BC Juvenile Turf at two, it has to be said that since that win, she has been a little disappointing. That’s not to say she hasn’t had some good wins, The Sands Point and the ONT Colleen both fell to her strong finish last year but nevertheless as a BC champion it would be fair to expect more wins since her BC victory. She made ground from a difficult draw on seasonal debut and is working well enough so she is by no means not capable of winning but as I said earlier, this is a race with a lot of talent, and she will have to be at her very best and then some to win.

2 Poetic Panther Maletto Rodriguez Jam 122 —

Beaten by Techfluence High in the Sands Point last year she is another that has ability and a good draw but faces a tough field that she may find too tough. Two good front running performances this year saw her win on seasonal debut and then run well for third in the Endeavor, but she will have to step up on those efforts to beat the best in this field.

3 Ponzi Scheme TwinTowersRacing Davis D 122 —

The winner of her last three, all stakes races and ranging from five furlongs to a mile and three eighths. That stat is pretty amazing in itself and would probably only happen at HRP but despite the range of distances, I think we can agree that she has found her groove recently and looks like a late maturing sort who is on the cusp of breaking through into a serious BC contender. In her twenty-nine race career she has never run over this trip and if she did win today, it would be her fourth stakes win in a row all over different trips. That is something I would love to write about on Sunday morning!

4 Lady Hilltopper Black N Gold Stable Pennington F 122 —

I think this mare has been under rated for a long time thanks in many ways to a run of poor draws and a running style that can lead her into trouble. At her best, I really think she is a potential BC chance this year, as she was last year, but after a late qualification she had a quick back up into the BC. This year the trainer is setting out early to reach the qualification mark and it started very well with a comprehensive win off top weight in the La Prevoyante Handicap setting her up perfectly for this chance against a tough field.

5 Perfect Class Sccj Stables Velazquez J R 122 —

Looked unbeatable as a three-year-old, but then turned four and suffered a fate we see so often. Very often a great two-year-old can stumble at three or a great three-year-old can stumble at four, if they have taken the improvement curve early in their career they certainly go through a period where they flatten out and others catch up. In certain cases, they get going again at five and I have a feeling that may be the case with her. Closing well in the Pegasus on seasonal debut she was certainly an eye catcher, and one feels that if momentum is going to move her way today this maybe the day we see the start of a big season.

6 Sinister City The Freakshow Van Dyke D 122 —

She was having a good season, but twelve races seemed to hit her hard at the end of the year and she was pretty weak in her two big assignments in the BC and The American Oaks. She hasn’t had much of a breather and goes again after a seasonal debut in the Megahertz saw her seventh. This trip suits and she has ability so you can never say never about her chances but there are some very good fillies and mares here. I think her best chances may come with rain, she did well to be third in the grade one QE II in her only start on an off track so if it comes up wet, she may be worth a look.

7 Shining At Knight Our Athletes Ferrer J C 122 —

A consistent sort, her last run and seasonal debut in the mud shouldn’t be weighted too highly as we all know that sometimes the pace in the wet can be unrealistic and suddenly stalkers turn into very deep closers and that’s what happened to her. The interesting factor here is that she has been a decent sort on the dirt track and today she is getting her first ever start on turf. We all know at HRP that can sometimes produce a very long priced winner and her recent turf work was certainly as good as some of the more established “turfers” in this race. I have this one in my notebook to throw a few coins on if the odds monkeys miss her.

8 Cmonyalll Arindel Prat F 122 —

This is a five-year-old who is certainly on the “five-year-old” improve. She started her run of four wins in a row at the end of last year and ended with a very easy win in the Endeavor on seasonal debut. I am very wary of her here even from a difficult draw and she must be one of the main contenders and possibly the winner.

9 Painville Mo Mentum Farm Geroux F 122 —

The quality of this field just gets deeper and deeper the wider you go and now we come to the BC Champion of 2023. She showed on seasonal debut in the Pegasus that she has lost nothing in turning six finishing strongly to be third beaten well under a length. This mare has been high up the ladder for a while now in her division and as the BC champ should probably be considered a favorite to win this race. The only thing that bothers me is her draw, she has had favorable draws in her last seven starts and the last time she was drawn wide saw her run an average race in the Wiley. Maybe she isn’t in the wide gate speed push gate so she may get away with it and if she does, it is very easy to see her winning.

10 La Terrifiant Smokey Stover Gallardo A A 122 —

Now a nine-year-old this mare is without doubt one of the best horses to run at HRP. Second in the BC to Painville last year she was only just behind her when fourth in the Pegasus on seasonal debut so sets up for another fascinating battle. I don’t think there is anyone that doesn’t want to see her hit the $10,000.000 mark and reach the sort of legendary status she deserves before she retires, so I will be cheering her on regardless of whether my Disney Dollars are riding on her back.

11 Tabitha Stephens Mb Stables Lopez P 122 —

Wow the quality just goes on and on as we find this five-year-old out in gate eleven. This one has been a little frustrating at times, one minute she looks like a BC contender the next she is just average, but her seasonal debut run certainly sent out a message that she was ready to make her mark as a five-year-old. Right on-speed from this same gate she went down by the smallest of margins in the Pegasus and had many of her main rivals behind that day. I would imagine the champion trainer will use the wide gate to do something similar today and there is no reason she won’t stay in front.

12 Undisputed Mb Stables Franco M 122 —

There’s one thing when the draw monster groups stable entries together in gate two and three but another when they are eleven and twelve and it will frustrate the trainer no end. Having said that two outside gates give the stable a unique tactical position and it will be mighty interesting to see what these two stable mates do with the wide draws. To be fair this filly is pretty good but compared to her stable mate, must be a second string.

SUMMARY

Wow, I know some like the drama of the KYD qualifiers but for me a field full of proven talent is so much more of a mouthwatering prospect. A rerun of the Pegasus in many ways, a rehearsal for the BC certainly this is going to be a superb race.
The winner, well any one of about six and the weather may play a big part, but I will go with a couple of the better drawn mares in Lady Hilltopper and Perfect Class as they may give us more value than the more established and current stars.

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES