A Look Back

Let's take a look at last weekend's graded stakes action...

ESSENCE HIT MAN was clear the entire way and gamely held off the late challenge by GYPSY RING to take the G3 Kennedy Road Stakes at Woodbine, covering the six furlongs in 1:08.75. SIGNATURE RED got up late for 3rd over a tiring HOLLYWOOD HIT in a cleanly run race. The very hittable trifecta paid $385.00 in the six horse field. ESSENCE HIT MAN, trained by Audre Cappucitti and ridden by Jesse Campbell, was allowed to get loose on the lead and will be interesting to see where this horse ends up next. His last three wins have been of the wire-to-wire variety and could be a bet against in a field with a little more early speed.

In the G3 Discovery Handicap at Aqueduct, GHOST GUNNER was sent out to the lead, but gave way to REDEEMED heading into the stretch. GHOST GUNNER eventually pulled up while REDEEMED and SOCIALSAUL ran to the front. RAISON D'ETAT also challenged and briefly got past SOCIALSAUL before that one rerallied to finish 2nd. REDEEMED showed his class and was much the best. ARTHUR'S TALE, last spring's Wood Memorial runner-up, clunked up for 4th. 32-1 longshot PHILLY ACE stumbled leaving the gate, losing all hope for those chasing a big price. REDEEMED paid $4.90 to win and keyed a $23.00 exacta with logical play SOCIALSAUL. RAISON D'ETAT filled out the $64.00 trifecta. The recently temporarily unsuspended Richard Dutrow trained the winner which was ridden by Edgar Prado.

GLEAM OF HOPE was squeezed at the start of the G3 River City Handicap at Churchill Downs as Calvin Borel and ZIMMER shot to the front early. Eventual winner BLUES STREET settled near the rear and made a wide move around the turn entering the stretch to corral ZIMMER and then held off a late challenge by ALLIE'S EVENT to win his 10th career race. Making his 2nd start under the care of Eddie Kenneally, BLUE STREET went the 1 1/8 miles in 1:51.72 with Robby Albarado aboard. This one is a former G2 winner who went to the post of the G1 Turf Classic at Churchill Downs at a shade under 4-1 on Derby Day 2010 (he finished 5th). After a poor showing at Saratoga, it looks like the seven year old gelding out of STREET CRY has found his step again and will be interesting to see where his new connections send this one for his next challenge.

In the first of two graded stakes races at Delta Downs, NOW I KNOW set taxing early fractions in the G3 Delta Downs Princess Stakes and it looked like the favorite, CANDREA, was primed to make a move and gun her down around the far turn. But that one bottomed out and NOW I KNOW ran away from the rest of them, impressively, finishing the one mile race in 1:39.60. It was close for 2nd between INNY MINNIE and longshot YVETE SANGALO. NOW I KNOW, trained by Don Von Hemel and ridden by Perry Compton, returned $9.80 to win and set up $80.80 exacta and $1,184.00 trifecta payouts. The winner shipped in from Retama Park, where the 2yo filly won her first four races and is now unbeaten in five starts.

The 2yo boys were up next in the G3 Delta Downs Jackpot Stakes, this one at 1 1/16 miles. DRILL and MY ADONIS went out quick early in a frantic speed duel, going the first quarter mile in 22 flat. Both were well cooked after a half in a couple ticks over 45. BASMATI had first crack at the fading leaders and took the lead briefly before SABERCAT came flying late to run him down. LONGVIEW DRIVE finished third in a race that featured a $164.40 exacta and $1,203.20 trifecta. Gerard Melancon was aboard the Steve Asmussen-trained winner who was making his graded stakes debut after winning the Garden State Stakes at Monmouth Park in October. SABERCAT has now won three straight races in varying fashion: he wired a field of non-winners two back at Monmouth, set just off the pace in the Garden State, and came from well back in the Delta Downs Jackpot. The 2yo out of BLUEGRASS CAT will have more than enough earnings to secure a spot in the starting gate of the 2012 Kentucky Derby if that's the route his connections choose.

SANAGAS was much the best in the G1 Hollywood Turf Cup at Hollywood Park, sitting three wide throughout and unleashing a furious run entering the far turn and running away from the field in his G1 debut. BOURBON BAY was able to get up for 2nd while FALCON ROCK finished third. The very logical $1 exacta returned $7.70 and the trifecta wasn't much better at $38.80 per dollar. SANAGAS, with Rajiv Maragh, won his 2nd straight race after capturing the off-the-turf G3 Sycamore at Keeneland in October. The former German runner will need to back this win up against a tougher field with all sorts of question marks regarding the level of competition the Graham Motion runner faced here.

I'll be back later with a look at the Thanksgiving Day graded stakes action.