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Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Thursday's Juvenile Race at Keeneland

On Thursday at Keeneland, race 2 is a 4.5-furlong maiden special weight for 2-year-olds. With two of the three coupled entries naming the same jockey, I’m not yet certain who will be scratched but as always Wesley Ward appears loaded with Gentlemans Code and Rockstar Richie. The former I discussed in this previous post (he scratched that day); in terms of precocious breeding, Rockstar Richie (Bring the Heat) doesn’t have much to recommend him, so hoping it’s his stablemate who runs here.

Al Stall’s Friscan (Two Punch) is the morning line second choice; his unraced Lemon Drop Kid dam’s first offspring Snorkel (Lion Hearted) took 17 attempts to break her maiden (and not exactly at the best tracks) while Stent Double (Dance with Ravens) and full-sister Two Perfect are maidens still. Nice workouts, but again no signs of precociousness in the damline.

Who does look interesting in this field? Both parts of Chuck Peery’s 6-1 couple entry (only one of which is likely) have strong damline indicators. City Fire (Carson City), the dam of Mr. Threewitt (Rock Hard Ten), broke her maiden by 3-1/2 lengths second-up at 2, then was then juvenile stakes-placed on turf. In The Midnight’s (North Light) unraced Vindication mare Graciously Soft is out of Siberian Fur (Siberian Express) who broke her juvenile maiden at first-asking; Graciously Soft is a half-sister to G1 Mother Goose and CCAO victress Spoken Fur whose daughter Unspoken Fur broke her maiden second-out as juvenile.

Also of interest is Freddie One Bite (Forest Wildcat) whose dam Etoile Petite (Robannier) was a juvenile maiden winner, not to mention his second dam Stars In My Pocket was multiple juvenile stakes-placed including G3 runner-up in Natalma Stakes. Etoile Petite’s half-sister Roujoleur (Red Ransom) narrowly missed capturing a 6-furlong juvenile stakes race first-up before breaking her maiden going 7.5 furlongs in a turf allowance race (she would go on to win and place in two more juvenile stakes). Freddie One Bite is bred along same lines as 2-time G3 Hal’s Hope victor Chatain who broke his maiden first-out, but at 3. This is also the family of G3 millionaire Brass in Pocket and G2 Delaware Handicap runner-up Lila Paige.

Finally, an attractive longshot is Father’s Mig (Johannesburg) whose full-sister A Lot Like Mom broke her maiden at 2; his unraced dam is a half-sister to G1 Travers winner Ten Most Wanted who just missed winning his juvenile maiden in late November going 8.5 furlongs.

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