‘Win and you’re in’ is part of how the drama unfolds as these prep races are designated as the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series. There are 16 ‘win and you’re in’ races in September and 3 are on tap this weekend.
On Saturday, September 3 at Baden Baden in Germany, the ‘win and you’re in’ races include the T. Von Zastrow Stuenpreis, a race that guarantees the winner a spot in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf. The next day at Baden Baden, the Longines Grosser Preis Von Baden winner will get an automatic berth into the Breeders’ Cup Turf.
On Saturday at Saratoga, the 7-furlong Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes is a ‘win and you’re in’ to the Breeders’ Cup Juveniles Fillies.
To be frank, German racing is far from my forte, but there are some runners in the T. Von Zastrow Stuenpreis that are of high quality including the lightly-raced, but talented Double Dream.
The Preis Von Baden is expected to be headed by Nightflower, who is a Group 1 winner that seems to prefer a little give in the ground. The Dylan Thomas filly was troubled in her 2016 debut.
The Spinaway Stakes will be run for the 125th time this week and some of the best horses ever have won this race. In the early 1970s Forward Gal, Numbered Account and La Prevoyante won consecutive runnings. In 1974, one of my favorite fillies, Ruffian, set the stakes record for the Spinaway when it was run at 6 furlongs. Flanders in 1994 was one of D. Wayne Lukas’ six trainees to win the Spinaway.
This Saturday, the Spinaway fillies that will be trying to ‘win and you’re in’ include a pair of stakes winners and several youngsters with brilliant futures.
From the rail out, Todd Pletcher’s trainee Sweet Loretta will try to run her record to a perfect 3 for 3. She was bet down to 1-2 in her Monmouth Park debut as she got an ideal 3-hole trip and won by 7 lengths. Rested for just over a month, Pletcher, who has won this race 5 times including last year with Rachael’s Valentina, put Sweet Loretta in the Schuylerville at Saratoga next. In that race Sweet Loretta overcame a horrible start to win going away.
Special Risk is the only maiden to try to win this stakes. That puts her behind the 8 ball right off the bat and she will be a huge number on the tote board.
Runway Doll got away with a very moderate pace in her debut but she led at every call and drew away to win her first race by over 13 lengths. The concern about the margin of victory is that it was slop aided and often times several runners just shy away from performing in the slop.
Fun had just that in her debut when she shocked a Churchill Downs group at 16-1. Even though it was not as much fun, this filly showed her debut was no fluke when she ran second to Sweet Loretta in the Schuylerville.
Cherry Lodge is another Pletcher student and she will have the ‘rabbit’ duties of the pair. A ‘rabbit’ in horseracing refers to a runner that is entered to ensure a hot and heavy pace and Cherry Lodge has that kind of speed. The expectations are there, too, as Cherry Lodge cost $450,000.
Pretty City Dancer has been a bad actress at the gate and if she is going to earn ‘win and you’re in’ honors she will have to break with her field. This Mark Casse trainee has won 2 of 3 and she put in a super middle move in her last win, the Debutante Stakes, when she went from 8th to a head off the lead in one call.
On the outside in this abbreviated cast comes You Know Too. This filly went :46.03 early winning her debut but she failed to hold on to a 4-length lead at the top of the lane in her next race. Losing an easy lead in any race, is something I personally do not like to see.
It seems that Pletcher holds the destiny of the Spinaway winner this season. His Sweet Loretta will take her share of action but her rider John Velazquez decided to opt to rider Cherry Lodge, who he was aloft for the debut.
Cherry Lodge gets the nod. Her sire was a champion and Cherry Lodge is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner and over $700,000 earner Stormello.
It’s good to be Pletcher and look for more ‘win and you’re in’ breakdowns in the future.
