Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Celestine better prepared for Sand Springs Stakes
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Celestine came up just a bit short against her stablemate Stormy Victoria in the South Beach Stakes five weeks ago on the Gulfstream Park turf.
“She was a bit rusty,” said Christophe Clement, who trains both mares.
The South Beach was the first start for Celestine in four months, and since then, the 6-year-old mare has trained right along at Payson Park. “She won’t be rusty this time,” said Clement.
That’s a promise to keep firmly in mind Saturday when the $100,000 Sand Springs comes up as the fifth of 14 races on the blockbuster Fountain of Youth card at Gulfstream. Celestine, with Jose Ortiz to ride, will be stoutly favored when she breaks from post 1 in the one-mile turf race. A Grade 1 winner, she looks to add to her more than $1.14 million in career earnings.
Six other fillies and mares will line up outside of Celestine for this third running of the Sand Springs. The race’s open counterpart, the Canadian Turf, will be run some 2 1/2 hours later as race 10, and without such a pronounced favorite.
Celestine, owned by Moyglare Stud, has been a standout among older female turf milers for nearly two years, dating to back-to-back victories in the Grade 2 Honey Fox and the Grade 1 Just a Game in the first half of 2016. Clement said sending her to the breeding shed was discussed after her last race at 5, the Noble Damsel in September, “but she was doing so well that we thought it was okay to run her another time or two here in Florida and see how she did.”
If Celestine is to be upset at a short price, the most likely perpetrators are Kylla Instinct (post 2, Tyler Gaffalione), who took Holy Helena to the brink in a turf allowance here last month, or Team of Teams (post 5, John Velazquez), who would seem to need a soft pace to go deeper into the stretch after fading badly as the South Beach pacesetter.
As for the Grade 3, $150,000 Canadian Turf, which leads off a late pick five wager (races 10-14) with a guaranteed pool of $500,000, the most intriguing entrant is the 9-year-old gelding Hogy, who leaves his comfort zone in the turf-sprint ranks to stretch out to a mile for the first time in nearly three years. Hogy won a turf-sprint stakes at Sam Houston in his most recent start and shows no signs of slowing down.
“He’s a graded stakes winner at a mile with limited starts,” said trainer Mike Maker, referring to Hogy’s win in the Grade 3 Hanshin Cup over the Polytrack at Arlington Park in May 2014. “I know it’s been a while, but we thought it’d be worth a shot to try it again.”
Other major players in the 52nd Canadian Turf include Galleon Mast (post 1, Luis Saez), an outstanding Floridabred entered off a Sunshine Millions victory; Shakhimat (post 7, Velazquez), a winner two starts back of the Grade 3 Tropical Turf over the local course for Hall of Fame trainer Roger Attfield; March (post 5, Gaffalione), who has served as the occasional workmate this winter for Kentucky Derby hopeful Catholic Boy at Bridlewood Farm for owner Robert LaPenta and trainer Jonathan Thomas; and Highland Sky (post 4, Jose Ortiz), who has been gelded since his last start in October and could be getting a prep from Barclay Tagg for longer races.
The Sand Springs is set for 1:30 p.m. Eastern, and the Canadian Turf for 4 p.m.