The Poker Stakes (Grade 3)- $250.000 Purse
BEL- For Four Year Olds and Upward
One Mile on the Turf
June 20, 2021

The Poker Stakes is a mile-long Grade 3 event that will be run on the grass at BEL for the 17th time. It’s purse has fluctuated over the years, though the $250.000 offered is the same as it was in 2020, and just $50.000 less than it had been in the few years prior. Well known horses such as Time Clock, Without Kera, Jamfest, and Jovan River have pulled off the win in the race, previously. Last year, Spiral would be your winner, giving his trainer Mb Stables his third win in the race. Spiral went on to finish fourth in the BC Mile, and is still active despite being dropped into open allowances for the time being. This year, the starting gate is full, and there is plenty of talent within it! Let’s meet the field!

#1- Id Rather Go Blind (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by Ru Gonzalez)- Did not run well in his last start, where he was beaten by seven lengths in the Grade 2 Fort Marcy right last month. It would be his second consecutive seventh place finish. These lines appear in his part performances at times, but then he has the ability to run off a few stronger results in a row, too. He’s a risky horse to pick, but it could lead to a good reward if his odds climb.

#2- Annihilator (Eastern Equine, ridden by A Beschizza)- He’s another one that will have a couple subpar outings in a row and then step up and run a big one. For Annihilator, one of those big ones came in his last start, when he placed second in the Grade 1 Man O War, so certainly a great time for him to step up. It’s time for him to follow that up, and recently, that is something that the gelding has struggled to do. Interestingly, after going 2-for-2 before being gelded, he is winless after it.

#3- Butter Ball (Angelos Stable, ridden by Mario Gutierrez)- We can’t say that he will be defending his crown as a Poker Stakes champion, but Butter Ball did win this race back in 2019, for then trainer Aml Racing. He has been through a lot since then, but this six year old gelding continues to put out strong results on the track. His last start was one of them, where he was third, and within a length, in the Grade 2 Connaught Cup Stakes at WO last month. He was coming on strong there, and if only he had one more furlong. This will be a furlong longer than that was.

#4- Ice Wall (RNP Stables, ridden by T McCarthy)- His recent performances looked like they may have hit an ice wall, but he did bounce back somewhat in his last start, running fourth in the $100.000 Seek Again here last month. Is that a turning point back to being the same horse that finished second in the BC Dirt Mile last fall and third in the Pegasus World Cup? Most of his grass experience goes back earlier in his career, and we’ll see if moving back to it here can keep him on the right track!

#5- Commander Wellesley (Jive Inc., ridden by D Davis)- The gelding has had a good career, with seven wins in 19 races, but at the moment his signature win is a $70.000 ungraded stake. He seems to be on the cusp of doing better, and with a little more luck at the wire, we could be saying he has two Grade 1 wins in his last races. You have to think that at some point, he is due to win something a lot more exciting. Maybe that comes right here.

#6- City Watch (John Henry, ridden by S R Bahen)- Looking to win his third race in a row, winning his last two on yielding and soft turf. The $100.000 With Anticipation was his win from last month, and he did so coming from off the pace. He’ll have to run on firm turf here, but that’s not a problem at all. He has hit the board in 11 of his 13 turf starts, and five of them are wins. It’s also been nearly a full year since he has not hit the board, so he really needs to be included somewhere in picks for this race, too.

#7- Sundays Sauce (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- The five year old by Lest Ye Command is looking for his sixth win and first since being acquired by D J C in the December auction for $70.010. He has made five starts since then, and was at his best going twelve furlongs in the Grade 3 Connally Turf Classic, where he was second. He’s mostly run less than that, and similar to today’s distance, but the results have not been there yet in those races while he has raced in black and gold.

#8- Pookie (Winning Link Stables, ridden by J Alvarado)- He has mostly run in overnights for his career, but he did win the $100.000 Real Good Deal, for CA-breds, at DMR last July. He was unable to follow that up in what has been his only graded attempt, the Amsterdam. Lately, he has been running better, so he is getting another chance to prove himself at this level. The bigger story is that his entire career has been run on the main track, so it’s a tough spot to make one’s turf debut.

#9- Atomic Eclipse (La Canada Racehorses, ridden by L Saez)- This is a veteran of running a mile on the grass, but he has had some inconsistency lately. In fact, over his last six starts, he has been alternating good starts with bad ones, so maybe it is not good news that he is coming off a third place finish in an open allowance at WO in April. Earlier this year, he won the Grade 3 Thunder Road at SA, but pulled a no show in the race that followed.

#10- Workload (Mb Stables, ridden by E Jaramillo)- The trainer looks to return to the winners circle for the fourth time in this stake, and Workload represents his only chance to do so here. The colt by No Doubt About It is an experienced runner at the graded level, but has managed only one win in one, which was at the Grade 2 Read Stakes last July. More recently, Workload has been a bit of an afterthought in races, occasionally running well, but has been beaten at least four lengths in four of his last five starts. That’s a bit un-Mb-like. He scales back his distance, and maybe that is what it will take.

#11- Blameitonthewhiskey (Fractious, ridden by J R Velazquez)- A veteran of 22 career starts, and will be looking for his seventh win here. Lately, those wins have been coming often for him, with four coming in his last six starts. Three of those were in overnights, but he did step up to win the $100.000 Dangers Hour at the Big A in April. He followed that up by making his graded debut in the Connaught Cup Stakes, and ran a decent fourth. Seems like he should continue this run of form here.

#12- Marx On The Moon (Court Jester Racing, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- Lastly, we get the horse that has the highest career earnings, as Marx On The Moon has won just a little bit over $900.000 for his career. He was seen last year in the BC Dirt Mile, and finished in the middle of the field. In February, he transitioned over to the turf, and ran in the Thunder Road. He may have needed that race before having better success on the grass afterwards, with a pair of seconds in two graded stakes, the San Simeon and the Shakertown. Tried more distance for his last start, and it didn’t go well, but maybe once again, he just needed that race to do better in the future.

Prediction: 5-6-11-7

— NS

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES