Honorable Miss

TRACK BANDIT PREVIEWS

Eight female sprinters will square off in Friday’s $150,000 Honorable Miss H.
(G2) at the Spa and the pace will be hot. MOLTO VITA (Carson City) will be part
of the early mix from her rail post and we’ll give her the edge for top honors.
She’s squared off against classy distaffers like Madcap Escapade all season but
didn’t fire last time when fourth in the Princess Rooney H. (G2). We’ll look for
the five-year-old to bounce back with a win under Javier Castellano.

Trained by Dallas Stewart, Molto Vita hasn’t had any success yet at Saratoga
but did finish a close fourth, beaten 1 1/4 lengths, in last year’s Ballerina H.
(G1). She earned a 104 BRIS Speed rating for that performance, and the bay mare
has displayed high-class form this season, finishing second by only three parts
of a length in the Humana Distaff H. (G1) in early May and delivering a powerful
performance to capture the Winning Colors S. at Churchill Downs two starts back,
setting splits of :21 3/5 and :44 4/5 before drawing off at the end. Versatile
enough to lead or rate, Molto Vita should be on the engine from the start and
prove difficult to reel in.

STORM MINSTREL (Storm Cat) enters on the upswing for conditioner Mark Hennig
and is a winner over the track. Jockey Edgar Prado will utilize stalk-and-pounce
tactics upon the improving four-year-old, and Storm Minstrel is an enticing 8-1
on the morning line. She looks dangerous in her graded debut.

BANK AUDIT (Wild Rush) will have a pace to run at and looms as a win threat
under jockey Ramon Dominguez. Winner of the Genuine Risk H. (G2) two back, the
Frank LaBoccetta trainee exits a second in the Vagrancy H. (G2) and relishes six
furlongs (10-4-3-2). The dark bay filly has earned triple-digit Speed ratings in
her last two starts and appears capable of a dangerous rally in this spot.

FOREST MUSIC (Unbridled’s Song) will be winging it from the far outside under
John Velazquez and could last a long way on the front end. Now trained by Steve
Asmussen, the gray miss finished a decent third in last year’s Test S. (G1) and
has been freshened for this appearance. We’ll use her on the bottom of some
exotics.

UMPATEEDLE (Suave Prospect) closed from just off the pace to capture the
Light Hearted H. at Delaware Park last out and could offer a decent late showing
here at long odds. Trained by Mark Sherman, the six-year-old mare will be tested
for class, but she’s never been better and deserves consideration for the
exotics. EBONY BREEZE (Belong to Me) is a multiple Grade 3 winner and has placed
in both previous starts at Saratoga. The Bill Mott trainee shipped to Philly
Park to record a stakes win in her last race, but the five-year-old mare has
been inconsistent this season. We wouldn’t be surprised to see her challenge but
will just watch to see how she performs.

FORTRESS HILL (Forest Wildcat) just missed in her last two starts against
listed rivals and steps up to face tougher here. She’s been most effective when
making the early lead and might face too much early pressure in her first
attempt at the graded level. HIGH PEAKS (Peaks and Valleys) is a two-time winner
at the Spa, but the New York-bred will be seriously tested for class in this
spot and probably won’t be able to settle into a good trip on the front end.