Fairyland eyes rebound after bad trip

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – After an ill-fated trip to England where several things went awry, Fairyland is back in the United States where her connections hope to right the ship when she runs in Wednesday’s $100,000 Bolton Landing Stakes for 2-year-olds gong 5 1/2 furlongs over Saratoga’s Mellon turf course.

Fairyland, trained by Wesley Ward, won her debut sprinting on dirt at Keeneland in April by 3 1/4 lengths. Ward, as he is wont to do, breezed Fairyland on the turf after that and thought enough of the daughter of Scat Daddy to send her to Royal Ascot for the Group 3 Albany Stakes.

But several things went wrong. First, Ward forgot to notify Ascot racing officials that he wanted to run Fairyland in blinkers, equipment she wore in her debut. She was not permitted to wear them in the Albany.

Second, Fairyland broke a little slow and was rushed up to make the lead under Donnacha O’Brien but faded to 12th, beaten 10 lengths.

“Unfortunately, when we went back to the post her saddle had slid back so the jock wanted to redo the saddle; she got really nervous in doing all of that,” Ward said. “They put her in the gate, she missed the break and rushed up to the lead and faltered. That race was a throw-out.”

On July 28, Fairyland worked four furlongs in 49.20 seconds over the Oklahoma turf course, the fastest of 52 breezes that morning at that distance.

“She came back to work awesomely good on the grass,” Ward said. “I’m really looking forward to this race. She’s a monster in the making.”

Ward also entered Mentality but said she would only run if something happened to force him to scratch Fairyland.

Sly Beauty, a daughter of Into Mischief, appears the major threat to Fairyland. After finishing fourth in her debut to Dream It Is – the filly who won the Grade 3 Schuylerville here on opening day – Sly Beauty beat males by 4 1/2 lengths in a six-furlong maiden turf race June 17 at Woodbine.

Sly Beauty, like Fairyland, was entered in but scratched from a first-level allowance sprint here July 24 when the race was rained off the turf to the dirt.

“She’s fast, and the grass just really moves her up,” trainer Mark Casse said.

Trainer Todd Pletcher entered the uncoupled pair of March X Press and Sugar Queen, both maiden winners at this meet.

Buy Sell Hold, winner of the Kentucky Juvenile in May, tries turf for the first time.