Kent

TRACK BANDIT PREVIEWS

Saturday’s $250,000 Kent S. (G3) drew only seven runners, and AL KHALI
(Medaglia d’Oro) is cross-entered to Sunday’s Saranac S. (G3) at Saratoga.
LAUREATE CONDUCTOR (Bernstein) won’t offer any value off his third in the
Secretariat S. (G1), but he’s our top pick in the about 1 1/8-mile turf affair
at Delaware Park.

Trained by Christophe Clement, Laureate Conductor broke his maiden three
starts back at Belmont Park, winning a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight by 7
1/4 lengths, and he stretched out to capture the nine-furlong Choice S. at
Monmouth Park in his next outing. The bay colt offered a solid run from midpack
in the 1 1/4-mile Secretariat, passing a couple of rivals in the stretch for
third-place honors, and earned a career-best 97 BRIS Speed rating. The versatile
sophomore figures to to enjoy a good stalking trip under Rosie Napravnik, and
he’ll appreciate the class relief on Saturday.

NO INFLATION (Repriced) grabbed fourth at 25-1 in the National Museum of
Racing Hall of Fame S. (G2)
last time, and the Tom Proctor pupil has been a consistent performer all season,
placing in three previous stakes attempts. The bay gelding narrowly missed two
starts back in the American Derby (G2), earning a 96 Speed rating for his head
second, and his BRIS numbers are very respectable. He’ll be forwardly placed
under Rosemary Homeister Jr., and we’ll use him in the runner-up slot.

OUT AT NIGHT (Aptitude) has improved significantly since being transferred to
the turf in April and likes the course (4-3-0-1). There are still class
concerns for the former claimer, but we’ll overlook his last effort at Saratoga
and look for a much-improved showing back at Delaware. The Randy Martin trainee
will have no trouble with the distance, and we think he can grab a small share
at a solid price (15-1 morning line).

Al Khali exits a troubled third in the Hall of Fame last time, and he’s been
tackling tougher company in his last three starts. The bay ridgling can’t be
overlooked if Bill Mott opts for this spot over the Saranac, but we expect to
see the conditioner keep the colt home at Saratoga. COLONEL RUTLEDGE (Orientate)
is also a top-three candidate. The stakes winner returned off a freshening with
a solid victory over allowance/optional claiming rivals last time at Laurel
Park, and we have tons of respect for trainer Graham Motion. The late runner
will be stretching out past 8 1/2 furlongs for the first time, but we won’t be
surprised to see him keep improving with a solid showing.

DR LARGE (A.P. Indy) looks like an early factor under Justin Shepherd. From the
Larry Jones shedrow, the bay colt will be making his graded bow off a
hard-fought victory in the Capital City S. at Penn National on August 1, and
he’s never been the distance. We’ll just watch to see if he can carry his speed.
BOOTS AHEAD (Storm Boot) exits a couple of unplaced efforts versus entry-level
allowance rivals at Saratoga and looks overmatched here.