On Fire!
The Stidham stable’s hotter than a plunge into a boiling pot right now, what will surely give the barn great confidence as it heads into a weekend of top flight racing.
Aside from fine form, there’s another reason for great cheer this past week – the stable was crowned the leading trainer by number of wins at the recently wrapped Colonial Downs, with 13 wins on the board.
“We had a fantastic meet at Colonial Downs, and this nice honor says a lot about the great team we have, including a great bunch of owners who have always been so supportive,” Stidham says. “Long may it continue!”
As for the week just gone, on Wednesday at Charles Town, DARRS Inc’s Brion ran out an impressive winner under jockey J.D. Acosta. This was a second career victory for this three-year-old son of More Than Ready.
Today at Delaware Park, John and Susan Moore’s Sir Lancelot was a stunning winner on his debut, pulverising the field on his debut by nearly 8 lengths, barely seeing another rival the entire race. Ridden by Mychel Sanchez, this 2-year-old son of Goldencents is one to watch for the future.
Later in the afternoon, DARRS Inc’s Guillaume was equally as impressive, sprinting clear down the stretch under Sanchez to score a third career victory.
And now for the weekend entries:
Tomorrow at Kentucky Downs, Pixelate is looking for a repeat victory in the $1 million G3 WinStar Mint Million Stakes, over a mile on the turf – a contest rescheduled from last week. Pixelate is drawn 2 of 10 with Joel Rosario on board, and is a 5-1 shot on the Morning Line.
Then it’s Princess Grace’s turn in the $750,000 G3 Kentucky Downs Ladies Turf Stakes, another mile contest on the turf. Stable favourite, Princess Grace is drawn 8 of 10 under Florent Geroux, and is a 3-1 shot to follow up a good second place finish last time out in the G1 Beverly D. Stakes at Churchill Downs.
Finally, Ready To Venture is on the also eligible list in the $600,000 G3 Mint Ladies Sprint Stakes, a 6 1/2 furlong sprint on the turf. If she gets in, Geroux takes the ride, and they’re currently listed a 15-1 shot.
On Sunday at Kentucky Downs, the maiden winning Tiki Bar is drawn 5 of 8 in the $500,000 Ainsworth Untapable Stakes, a 6 1/2 furlong turf sprint for 2-year-old fillies. A 12-1 shot on the Morning Line, Tiki Bar will be ridden by Tyler Gaffalione.
