Class relief for Snap Decision

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The $100,000 Better Talk Now on Monday at Saratoga has drawn a promising and competitive cast of 3-year-olds who are looking for their first stakes win at a mile or over. The field of six, plus one main-track-only entrant, will meet at a mile over the inner turf course.

The Better Talk Now is named for the Graham Motion-trained warhorse who from 2001 to 2009 won $4.3 million and 14 of 51 starts, including the 2004 Breeders’ Cup Turf at Lone Star Park and four other Grade 1’s. Better Talk Now was euthanized in late June at age 18 due to complications following colic surgery.

Blind Ambition, trained by Todd Pletcher, and Small Bear, sent out by Jeremiah Englehart, are the only three-time winners in the lineup, and Blind Ambition is the only stakes winner. Snap Decision and Holiday Stone may be the horses to beat, however, as arguably they have been facing the toughest company.

Snap Decision, a Phipps Stable homebred trained by Shug McGaughey, has faced the undefeated Bricks and Mortar in two of his last three starts. Holiday Stone, who is conditioned by George Weaver, comes out of the Manila, which was won by Bricks and Mortar, and the Grade 2 Penn Mile, a race in which the top two finishers, Frostmourne and Big Score, ran extremely well.

Snap Decision finished second to Bricks and Mortar in a firstlevel optional claimer, then came back to win a similar race. He finished fourth to Bricks and

Mortar, Yoshida, and Big Handsome in the Grade 2 Hall of Fame Stakes here on Aug. 4.

“He’s been improving in his races,” McGaughey said. “He put himself in a position to win last time but didn’t finish as well as I would have liked. He faced a tough group in the Hall of Fame, but I think he can be one of those horses.”

Snap Decision is a halfbrother to Mr Speaker, a winner of the Grade 1 Belmont Derby and $1.2 million.

“I wish the race was longer,” McGaughey said of the Better Talk Now, “but it is what it is.”

Holiday Stone was moving well in the stretch of the Penn Mile when he ran into traffic problems. He finished fifth, beaten 3 3/4 lengths, but would have been considerably closer with clear sailing.

In the Manila on July 4, he was challenging for the lead in upper stretch when Bricks and Mortar ran by him. He finished fourth, beaten one length.

“He was lugging in a little late,” Weaver said. “We’ve given him a freshening and two solid works. He’s in good form and coming into the race well, but the ultimate judgment will be the race itself.”

The field is completed by Hieroglyphics, who won a first-level allowance a race after finishing second to Snap Decision; Adonis Creed, the third-place finisher in the Grade 3 Kent; and maintrack-only Aquamarine.