Blacktype seeks repeat in Turf Cup

The renamed (take a breath) Baltimore/Washington International Turf Cup is the marquee race on an eightstakes card at Laurel Park on Saturday.

First post for the 12-race program has been moved up 40 minutes to 12:30 p.m. Eastern.

Blacktype, who won the race a year ago for Christophe Clement when it was called the Commonwealth Turf Cup, will be seeking a repeat score. To succeed, he will have to defeat, among others, Projected and Ring Weekend. The trio finished within 1 1/4 lengths of each other in the restricted Lure Stakes at Saratoga on Aug. 5.

The other seven Saturday stakes at Laurel also are all on turf. They include the Grade 3, $200,000 Commonwealth Derby and the Grade 3, $150,000 Commonwealth Oaks. The remaining five stakes are worth $60,000 each and are for Virginia-bred or -sired runners. With the exception of the Turf Cup, the stakes are sponsored by the Virginia Equine Alliance and the Virginia HBPA.

The Grade 2, $200,000 Turf Cup was run at the now-defunct Colonial Downs from 2005 to 2013 as the Colonial Turf Cup. It was brought back at Laurel as the Commonwealth Cup in 2015 and shortened in distance to a mile last year.

The Lure was won by 14-1 Zennor, who tracked pacesetting Macagone, and then took control in the stretch. The 1 1/16-mile race was run in a quick 1:39.23 following a tepid 47.00 half-mile.

Projected, the 6-5 favorite, rallied to second, finishing a length ahead of fifth-place Ring Weekend. It was another neck back to Blacktype, who made his best move into the stretch but then flattened out through fast late fractions to finish sixth, beaten 2 1/4 lengths.

All three horses have since run back. Ring Weekend and Projected finished fourth and fifth, separated by a neck, in the Grade 2 Bernard Baruch at Saratoga. Blacktype dropped a notch to win a high-level optional-claiming race over easier company at Belmont Park. The win was his first in seven starts since the 2016 Commonwealth Cup.

Projected, who is trained by Chad Brown and races for Juddmonte Farms, ran evenly in the Baruch and lacked his usual closing kick.

“I was a little disappointed he didn’t fire last time,” Brown said. “We put blinkers on him, but we’re taking them off today. They didn’t seem to help him. He also caught soft ground that day, which didn’t help. I’m hoping for firm ground Saturday in Maryland.”

Ring Weekend has been dropping far back early in his recent starts, leaving himself with too much to do in the stretch. He needs to stay closer if he is to win at a mile.

Edgar Prado regains the mount.

Brown’s second entrant is Catapult, who finished several lengths behind Projected in stakes in May and June. Catapult returned from a seven-length break to win a third-level optional claimer at Saratoga. He comes into the Turf Cup with eight weeks between races.

The 100 Beyer Speed Figure he earned at Saratoga fits well here.

“He had a nice win up at Saratoga,” Brown said. “He’s fresh, he had a little layoff, we’ll see how he does.”

Nik Juarez will return to his old stomping grounds to ride Projected. Feargal Lynch has the mount on Catapult. The two also ride for Brown in the Oaks. Lynch will be aboard Rymska and Juarez is named on Taperge.