Anstu Stables’ BLUES STREET (Street Cry [Ire]) settled near the rear of
Saturday’s $300,000
Mervin H. Muniz Jr. Memorial H. (G2) at Fair Grounds, came with a tenacious
rally in the lane and got the win by 1 3/4 lengths with Javier Castellano
aboard. Trained by Todd Pletcher, the six-year-old veteran ran the about 1
1/8-mile firm-turf affair in 1:50 to earn his second straight stakes and fourth
straight race following a 2 1/4-length score in the Fair Grounds H. (G3) on
February 20.
Castellano allowed Blues Street to run just off the rail in the back while
Jet Propulsion (Double Honor) moved up on a clear lead through splits of :23,
:49, 1:12 4/5 and 1:37 2/5. Nearing the turn Blues Street began gaining
momentum, coming wide around rivals and driving down the lane to be clear late.
Sent off the 5-2 favorite in the 10-horse field, Blues Street paid $7.60,
$4.40 and $3.20 while keying the $195.60 exacta and $4,085.40 trifecta. Pick Six
(Dynaformer), the 30-1 eighth choice, held second by a head over 68-1 ninth pick
Transduction Gold (Formal Gold), who was in turn a neck up on Jet Propulsion
when crossing under the wire. Place was worth $17.80 and $12.20 while show gave
back $18.40. The 8-5-11-2 superfecta returned a hefty $57,294.
Yate’s Black Cat (Black Minnaloushe), El Caballo (El Corredor), Feels All
Right (Ire) (Danehill Dancer), Baletti (Gulch), My Happiness (Arg) (Festin
[Arg]) and Pickapocket (Mecke) followed the top four home while Stones River
(Monarchos), a main-track only entrant, and Red Alert Day (GB) (Diktat) were
both scratched.
Blues Street is a former high-price claimer who seems to have finally put it
all together. In addition to his Fair Grounds H. win, the dark bay gelding also
captured the 2009 Memorial Day H. and was second in the Independence Day S.,
both at Mountaineer Park. He ran third in his stakes debut, the 2007 Pasadena
S., and now boasts a 22-8-5-3, $487,178, record.
Bred in Kentucky by Harriet Finkelstein, Blues Street sold for $85,000 as a
2005 Keeneland September yearling and RNA’ed for $77,000 at the 2006
Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May two-year-old sale. He’s the first foal to race out of
Capote Blues (Capote) and has two-year-old half-sister named Henny Blues
(Hennessy) and a yearling half-sister by Hard Spun. Capote Blues hails from 1994
Matron (G1) winner Stormy Blues (Cure the Blues).