Amy’s Challenge to face 10

The Shakopee Juvenile Stakes is attracting a lot more attention than usual this year.

The closing-day feature at Canterbury Park includes the 2-year-old filly Amy’s Challenge, who has made her way onto early leader lists for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.

Del Mar, site of the 2017 Breeders’ Cup, is a long way from Shakopee, Minn. – about as far as the BC Juvenile Fillies is from a Canterbury maiden race. But if Amy’s Challenge runs like she did in her debut, and like she has been working since that race, she will at least get a look in high-end company.

Carded as race 9, the Shakopee Juvenile offers a general purse of $75,000 plus a $25,000 bonus for Minnesota-breds. The six-furlong race drew 11 entrants, which is just fine with Mac Robertson, who trains Amy’s Challenge.

“I was happy to see a fuller field,” Robertson said. “I didn’t want to see a four- or five-horse field, then go to Kentucky and see 12. A horse sure feels the electricity of a race like that. Plus, I think it’s a good race for Canterbury Park. It looks like there are three horses that might be good horses, and that’s what everybody wants to see.”

Amy’s Challenge’s connections plan to run in the Grade 1 Alcibiades on Oct. 6 at Keeneland if things go well Saturday. The other two “good horses” to which Robertson refers are Mr. Jagermeister and Soul of Discretion.

Mr. Jagermeister finished second in his only opencompany start, the Prairie Gold Juvenile, but did run into a talented colt named The Tabulator (who goes in the Iroquois Stakes on Saturday at Churchill), and, trainer Valorie Lund has said, was too aggressive early in that race. Lund was happier with the way Mr. Jagermeister rated on the lead Aug. 20 in the Northern Lights Futurity for Minnesota-breds, and she surely was pleased with his 15 1/2-length victory. Mr. Jagermeister won his first start, a Minnesota-bred maiden sprint, by 11 1/2 lengths.

Soul of Discretion’s lone start came Aug. 25, when he went to the front in a five-furlong maiden race and drew away to win by 13 lengths.

Those two horses should offer a greater challenge to Amy’s Challenge than she encountered in her debut, but she still looks best. Amy’s Challenge won her lone start, a 5 1/2-furlong maiden race Aug. 16, by 16 1/2 lengths. Though she appeared to be on cruise control, she ran fast enough to get a 91 Beyer Speed Figure, which remains the best 2-year-old Beyer in North America this year.

Robertson has walked the line between keeping Amy’s Challenge fit to perform Saturday while keeping her fresh for the possible Alcibiades start.

“I want her to improve after the race,” he said. “I haven’t drilled her. She did work the other day in 11 and change with 140 pounds on her back.”

Translation: Amys Challenge went six furlongs in a little more than 1:11 with a relatively heavy exercise rider aboard while not being asked to work fast. Let’s see what she can do.