Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
3-year-olds can step forward
The field of eight for the $75,000 Catlaunch Stakes for Ohio-bred 3-year-olds and up Saturday at Thistledown includes a formidable trio of older horses in multiple stakes winners Eightthehardway, Leona’s Reward, and True Cinder. But the rest of the field is made up of 3-year-olds who have put together summer campaigns – and the time may be right for them to step up in this 1 1/16-mile race.
Among them, Eightthehardway, Leona’s Reward, and True Cinder have won or placed in 37 stakes while earning more than $1.3 million. They’ve accounted for the last two editions of the Catlaunch, with Eightthehardway winning the 2016 renewal and Leona’s Reward edging True Cinder by a half-length last year.
However, all three are looking to rebound from a loss. Eightthehardway, who is trained by Glenroy Brown, won the George Lewis Memorial Stakes in June, but finished fourth in both subsequent outings.
Leona’s Reward, owned and trained by Tim Hamm, won three straight stakes earlier this year – getting the better of rival True Cinder, who defeated her several times in 2017 – but has finished second or third in stakes in her four starts since.
True Cinder, owned and trained by Mike Rone, won back-to-back stakes by open lengths during the summer, but was seventh on turf in the Vivacious Handicap last month, her first finish out of the top three since she was fourth in her debut in July 2016.
With the older horses seemingly vulnerable, the 3-yearolds in this field may have a prime opportunity to step up and make a statement.
Mobil Solution won the 1 1/16mile Horizon Stakes for 3-yearolds at Belterra on Aug. 12. That race was taken off the turf and run on the main track. He has been competing creditably against older runners for most of the season, having finished second to Eightthehardway in the Lewis Memorial and then second to True Cinder in the Buckeye Native Stakes. Leona’s Reward was third in the Buckeye Native.
Rosco P. Coltrane finished second in the Horizon Stakes, then blitzed the field by 13 1/4 lengths in a one-mile allowance race at Belterra.
The filly Birdacious has only a maiden win from eight starts, but has finished second or third in three stakes. Most recently she was third in the Miss Southern Ohio on the turf at Belterra behind Hopes Frog Song and Leona’s Reward.
Funnel Cake drew the rail as he stretches out off a sprint allowance win at Thistledown. Maiden winner Kalydar completes the field.
– Nicole Russo
Shakopee Juvenile gets 11
The $75,000 Shakopee Juvenile, the closing-day feature at Canterbury Park, looks on paper like a decent race. It stands almost no chance of living up to the 2017 edition.
A year ago, the filly Amy’s Challenge outdueled Minnesota-bred Mr. Jagermeister to win the Shakopee Juvenile by a neck and earn a 92 Beyer Speed Figure, one of the fastest 2-yearold figures of 2017. No such animals appear to populate the field of 11 entered to race six furlongs on Saturday, but there’s some talent here.
Though he turned in a disappointing performance fading off the pace to finish a distant last of five July 20 in the Prairie Gold Juvenile at Prairie Meadows, Louisiana-bred Brother Richie could be a key player back on his home track. Brother Richie debuted at Canterbury and scored what might have been the best 2-year-old maiden win of the meeting June 24 when he won by nearly six lengths. Brother Richie, trained by Gary Scherer, has worked four times for Saturday’s race, two of those drills bullets, and figures to go postward lower than his 6-1 morning-line odds.
Mac Robertson, Amy’s Challenge’s trainer, entered two horses in the Shakopee Juvenile, Mister Banjoman and Full of Grace. Mister Banjoman looks considerably more advanced than Full of Grace. He runs back on short rest, having just started Sept. 2 in the $100,000 Northern Lights Futurity for Minnesota-breds. Favored at 6-5 there on the back of a strong debut win, Mister Banjoman set the pace but was hounded throughout by the more experienced Dame Plata, who wore him down and won by three-quarters of a length.
Brother Richie and Mister Banjoman are drawn adjacently in posts 4 and 5 and could get hooked into a taxing early and middle pace. Dress Shopping, a filly by first-crop sire Cross Traffic, stalked, pounced, and drew away to an eight-length debut win in her only start, and a similar trip is possible from post 9. Her trainer, Robertino Diodoro, is trying to catch Robertson for leading trainer at the meet, which concludes after 14 races Saturday afternoon. First post for the marathon program is 12:45 Central with the featured 10th scheduled for 5:05.
◗ Speeding Kid appears to be an odds-on standout in the supporting feature, the $60,000 MTA Stallion Auction. Speeding Kid has run into Mr. Jagermeister in two of his last three starts and takes a steep class drop in this heavily restricted race.