The Zagora- $125.000 Purse
BEL- For Fillies and Mares Three Years Old and Upward
One Mile and One Half on the Turf
October 28, 2018
A field of five is going to the gate to contest the inaugural running of this twelve furlong race on the grass. For a first year ungraded stake, it has a pretty good purse associated with it, so let’s hope that the race will have a bright future in the game. For now, we will get to see which of these fillies will be able to say they won the first Zagora. Despite the race being for older horses, the field is entirely comprised of three year olds. Let’s take a look at them!
#1- Tip Of A Pedal (Night Rider Stables, ridden by Ro Maragh)- Comes into this race after absolutely annihilating a field of three other WV-breds, winning the allowance by ten lengths. The trainer is hoping that monster win can carry into success here, as really the races preceding that will not overly impress, scoring SRF’s in the mid-80’s. She has fared well since Night Rider moved her to the grass, and will now undertake the longest race of her career.
#2- Agenda (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- The only runner in this field with any form of graded stake history, and that includes running in the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf last year. Despite the attempts in those races, she was not able to hit the board in any of them, or be anywhere close. Her biggest successes have been in allowances, as well as a smaller ungraded stake over a year ago. Two for three in her career at a mile and a sixteenth, the longest distance she has ever raced.
#3- Free Kingdom (Hambletonian Stable, ridden by I Ortiz Jr)- This filly will be looking for her fourth consecutive victory here in the Zagora, and she is coming off a sharp triumph in the $200.000 Pebbles right here at BEL just two weeks ago. Overall, her 10-5-4-1 career record glowingly speaks of her record of consistency. To date, the longest that she has run has been nine furlongs, but she does look like she will take to this distance pretty well. She is my pick to come out on top and extend the streak.
#4- Carrie Bushyhead (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by L Saez)- A lightly raced filly who will make a big jump in her career here. She’s two for five, though has not always been seen at the biggest tracks in the game. Most recently, she won an allowance at RET over three others. One thing that she does have over the others in the field is experience running this distance, or similar, but in order for that to be relevant, she will have to look like she did at RET, and not in prior race, a twelve furlong event at FE.
#5- Dulwich Hamlet (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- After being claimed for $32.000 in May, Dulwich Hamlet has done everything right in her new silks, going a perfect two-for-two. D J C Racing Stables sent her running long for the first time, instead of sprinting, and the results have definitely paid off. Here, she will make her stake debut after a PRX allowance win, and the trainer will see just how long she wants to run. Plenty of promise here, and a sure-fire threat to win.
Prediction: 3-2-5-1
— NS
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded
