Snow Chief Stakes
SA Race #5 1 1/8m Turf Stake
Purse $150.000 For Three Year Olds Foaled In CA.
1 Suspect Arindel Bravo J
A brief look at this ones recent races and you wonder how he has only won two from twelve for $120. The winner of two of his first three he hasn’t won since but has contested everything from grade ones to optional claimers and has never been that far away. Such is the difficulty with younger horses here at HRP as the races tend to be ultra competitive at all levels from the earliest juvenile races up until about now.Though this horse has only run twice on turf he did pretty well in both and managed a close second last time in the Sullivan Stakes. If previous tactics are followed and from this draw he should get an easy lead and if not pressured could well still be in front in the stretch. However, in 5 horse fields the leader rarely wins so i can see him running second or third unless the trainer changes something.
2 Oh Brother Rampage Stable Van Dyke D
A consistent sort his only real failure came in the BC Juvenile Turf when drawn wide and he is a through and through turfer who is proven around this trip making him a solid chance here. The draw certainly helps his chances and he is likely to sit around second or third early, a position which in five horse fields tends to be the place to be.
3 Applejack Allinthegate Maldonado E
Another solid sort at this level he seems to be cut from a very similar cloth as Oh Brother and these two seem to have a very similar chance. This one has tended to sit a bit more off the pace so he would need to stay close enough to mount the late challenge which will win this race but if he does he has a live chance.
4 Angel Code Smokey Stover Gutierrez Mario
Certainly the trainer that has been threatening to become the next champ and this year they really seem to have got into top gear. Not the most accomplished in the field as he is lightly raced but won in a good time over this trip last time out and that is enough to make him a big chance here to carry on the stables success.
5 Shalaa Rock Creek Hernandez J J
Another lightly raced sort i feel he could well be a little overlooked in this field. Bought for just $1 he ran well to be second in the Wildcat last time and has the big advantage of being the one that will best see out this trip.
SUMMARY
A tough race to call and when that happens it is best to go with the stable names. So for that reason only i will take Angel Code to beat Suspect but i wont be mortgaging the house to do so. All the others have claims and one feels that whoever is third or fourth after two furlongs may well turn out to be the winner just because that is how most of these five horse repeats tend to end up.
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
