The Stymie
1 Mile Dirt Stake Purse $150.000 Four-Year-Olds And Upward. At AQU
The Stymie was first run in 2010 and won by Nakamura Stables’ Cerano which went on to earn $707.130 in his career. Nak is back this year with Malediction looking for another win. Night Rider Stables won in 2015 and 2021 and is back with Bonus Baby for another try. TwinTowersRacing won twice in 2022 and 2024 and brings Dr Pepper for a shot. And finally, Team 7 Illusions won last year and returns this year with Propel. Here’s the field:
Horse Owner Odds SRF
Bitcoin Bobby Robeth *4-1 99
Malediction Nakamura Stables 5-1 94
Bonus Baby Night Rider Stables 4-1 97
Fire Chase Mb Stables 4-1 94
Declaration Team 7 Illusions 9-2 95
Smitten Asgar 5-1 93
Grande Hustler Threshold 6-1 91
Red Bull D J C Racing Stables 8-1 96
Tuff Gong Winning Link Stables 10-1 97
Dr Pepper TwinTowersRacing 12-1 90
Smitten got run down in the 1 1/16 mile Lake Ontario Stakes. Then at 73-1, he had the lead at a mile in his following race, but got caught to finish second, so he’s here hoping to hold on this time when that mile rolls around.
2 Fire Chase Mb Stables 94
Fire Chase had a decent sophomore year in 2024 where he won the SA Derby and ran third in the KYD for Fractious. After running second in the Grade III Vosburgh, he was sold to Riggins Racing for $500.000 where things did not go all that well and six races later, he was claimed by Bigking for $20.000. Things did pick up for Bigking who got a second in the Grade III Salvator Mile and a third in the Grade II San Diego Handicap with him before auctioning him off to Mb Stables for $129.000. Dan recently got a third with him in the $200.000 CC Jewel just before a nice starter allowance win in prep for this race.
3 Grande Hustler Threshold 91
If you’re looking for a miler, Grande Hustler is the definition of a miler. He has won five times and won every time at a mile. He comes to this race with four wins in a row at a mile. The problem, of course, is level. He has stepped up with each win, but he started very low, four races back it was a $5.000 claimer at BTP, then a $7.500 claimer at BTP, then a $9.000 allowance at BTP and finally a $18.000 starter allowance at SUN. Then he was sold by Hygana Stables for $55.000, so the question is, is this a stakes quality horse for the race?
4 Malediction Nakamura Stables 94
Malediction came up short in the Grade III Hooper at GP as the favourite and that was the first time he ever finished worse than second in his eight-race career. It happens. He gained favouritism off his second-place finish in the Grade III Native Diver Stakes a DMR the race before that registered an impressive 100 SRF. His connections are not ready to give up on him and I’m not either.
5 Red Bull D J C Racing Stables 96
Red Bull: a deep closer with all those deep closer problems. Just as inconsistent as they come, Race before last was smack on, breaks out last, works his way up, still five-lengths off at the stretch and wins going away. Next race, he’s 101-1, dead last too long, makes up seven lengths, but that leaves him three-lengths short… the odds are right, and Dom’s pounding his head against the wall.
6 Bitcoin Bobby Robeth 99
Bitcoin Bobby came within a half-length of upsetting the Grade I Malibu Stakes in the mud to finish off his sophomore year and earn a 97 SRF. He’s never shown any particular interest in off going, so one must assume this was an honest seven-furlong run and he was coming from off the pace which makes this mile event appealing especially since he won the $125.000 Discovery here at AQU the race before the Malibu. Ties that up in a neat little bow.
7 Bonus Baby Night Rider Stables 97
Bonus Baby missed upsetting the Grade III Mr. Prospector at GP to end his six-year-old year with a 97 SRF and starts his seven-year-old season with a series of sharp works for this race. His race before the Mr. Prospector was a 98 SRF second at a mile as the heavy odd-on favourite in a DMR overnight. Prior to that you have to go back to 2023 to see him racing as short as a mile, but he was a darn good miler back then, and he’s showing flashes of that old glory lately.
8 Dr Pepper TwinTowersRacing 90
Dr Pepper hasn’t had an illustrious career, but decent enough, earned over $232.000, enough to attract $77.000 in auction bids when Keikowin Racing decided to put him up. However, his two races for his new owner have not gone well at SA with a six-length loss and a ten-length loss.
9 Tuff Gong Winning Link Stables 97
Tuff Gong started off life like a world beater, winning the $225.000 Bashford Manor in his third race but then couldn’t seem to settle down, so they tried gelding him and giving him some time off. At first it looked like it helped with back-to-back allowance wins but then came the Grade III LA Stakes and the bubble burst, so back to the drawing board.
10 Declaration Team 7 Illusions 95
Declaration finished off his sophomore year with a sharp win in a CD allowance race that followed an odds-on disappointment in the $250.000 St Louis Derby. He looked like a true miler in that CD race and was put out for a rest in October to see how he comes back as a four-year-old.
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
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