Miss Delicious may control the pace

Miss Delicious could go a long way on the lead Friday in the eighth race at Belmont Park.

“It looks like on paper she is the controlling speed,” said trainer David Donk.

Miss Delicious is part of a field of seven for the first-level allowance for 3-year-old fillies over 1 1/16 miles on turf. Others set to run include Amy C, who is making her first North American start after winning her maiden in France, and Line Dancing, who is back in the overnight ranks following four stakes starts. The field also includes three-time winner Kitten With a Whip.

Miss Delicious enters off a wire-to-wire win over a mile and a sixteenth on turf at Belmont. She defeated older rivals in the maiden special weight June 12. The score came in the second

career start for Miss Delicious, a daughter of Kentucky Derby winner California Chrome who has made both of her starts on turf for breeder and owner Robert Spiegel.

“This year my intention was to run her on the dirt, but there wasn’t a dirt race,” Donk said. “I have a couple for the same owner and needed to split them up. We wanted to run her a distance and the only option to try was grass. We certainly found out she’s okay on the grass.”

Miss Delicious won her maiden by a length and a quarter, and the Beyer Speed Figure of 79 she earned is the best career number in the field Friday. Donk said the allowance comes back a tad quicker than ideal, but the race was an extra that suited Miss Delicious.

“It’s straight 3-year-old fillies and you don’t get a lot of opportunities like this,” he said. “I knew if we didn’t take advantage, we wouldn’t see anything for a few weeks.

“It will test her a little bit off a maiden win.”

Jose Lezcano, who was aboard last out, has the mount again from post 6.

“She’s a big, scopey filly, a pretty filly,” Donk said. “She’s a lovely mover and she’s training well.”

Line Dancing was third in the Grade 2 Edgewood in April at Churchill Downs. John Velazquez has the mount for trainer Michael Matz.

Amy C was a maiden winner at Deauville in her most recent start March 6. She will be first Lasix. Irad Ortiz Jr. has the mount for trainer Chad Brown.

Kitten With a Whip has won back-to-back races, her latest in an allowance route over 1 1/16 miles on turf at Pimlico.

Purse hike for Saratoga

The New York Racing Association on Tuesday announced a purse increase for the upcoming meet at Saratoga, which opens July 15.

The increase boosts the value of maiden special weight races for open company to $100,000, from the previous purse of $90,000, according to the press release. Maiden special weight races for New York-breds will be worth $85,000, an increase of $5,000.