Fawkes runners steal the show on Festival Preview Day

Burning Time is headed to the In Reality off Saturday’s win in the Foolish Pleasure (Jim Lisa Photos)

Trainer David Fawkes sent out three runners at Calder on Saturday and
they all won. The first came in the 5TH race, when Live Every Day (Lion
Heart) captured her maiden debut, but then the conditioner saddled
Harold Queen’s homebred BURNING TIME (Burning Roma) and Alex Lieblong’s
CONWAY TWO STEP (Spanish Steps) in a pair of stakes on the Festival
Preview Day card.

Burning Time started the stakes action and stamped his ticket to the
$300,000 In Reality division of the Florida Stallion S. (FSS) series on
October 15 when getting up in the final furlong of the $88,100

Foolish Pleasure S. to score by 2 1/2 lengths. With Luiz Saez in the
saddle, the two-year-old ran a mile and 70 yards on the fast dirt in
1:45 1/5 to finally cross under the wire in front for the first time in
his career.

The dark bay colt ran second in his maiden claiming debut before
being placed first via disqualification, but was unable to do better
than ninth in the Dr. Fager division of the FSS in his next race after a
poor start.

“When he had that bad race in the Stallion Stakes, he broke awful and never
had a chance,” Fawkes said. “I can’t blame it on the sloppy track that day.
Although he wasn’t technically a maiden going into today’s race — he got put up
in his first race after finishing second — it was like Little Drama, who broke
his maiden in a stakes, and they’re both by Burning Roma.”

Conway Two Step could try to emulate her dam by taking both the Brave Raj and My Dear Girl (Jim Lisa Photos)

Two races later, Conway Two Step defeated 4-5 favorite Frolic’s Revenge
(Vindication) in front-running fashion to post a 2 1/2-length win in the $90,900
Brave
Raj S. with Daniel Centeno aboard. The pair posted a final time of 1:45 1/5
for a mile and 70 yards on the main track.

Conway Two Step broke her maiden last out in her fourth try while going six
furlongs. By taking her stakes bow, the bay lass improved her line to 5-2-0-2
and has banked $94,260 in lifetime earnings.

“We really loved this filly at the two-year-old sales,” said the trainer’s
wife and assistant, Celia Fawkes. “She didn’t actually sell (at auction), but
fortunately we were able to get the owner (Alex Lieblong) to buy her privately
afterward. In her first couple of races we were dealing with some respiratory
issues — she really was never sick — but finally it all came together for her
when she won last time and we were pretty sure she’d like the additional
distance.”

Conway Two Step is out of Nancy’s Glitter (Glitterman), who in 1997 became
the first of only three fillies to sweep the filly’s divisions of the FSS. The
juvenile miss is eligible for the series, which will showcase the the final leg,
the $300,000 My Dear Girl, on October 15.

Callmethesqueeze fulfilled trainer Manny Azpurua’s confidence with a win in the Judy’s Red Shoes (Jim Lisa Photos)

“I had a lot of confidence going into this race; really, I felt there was no
way she could get beat,” Azpurua admitted. “I think she’s very good, perhaps
better on the grass, but I believe she can run on both (dirt and turf). I don’t
know about her next race yet, I’ll talk with the owner.”

Callmethesqueeze gave Azpurua his third winner of the Judy’s Red Shoes
following Miss Medallion (1998) and Mop Squeezer (Roanoke) (1999), the latter of
whom is actually the dam of Callmethesqueeze. The sophomore filly also captured
the Sweettrickydancer S. and has placed in the Three Ring S. and Crystal Rail S.
after breaking her maiden in May.

“She didn’t run as a two-year-old, not because of any physical issues, but
mental and behavioral ones,” Azpurua said. “She was like the devil and we had to
send her back to the farm twice.”

Manicero could end up facing graded company off his win in the Needles (Jim Lisa Photos)

While Callmethesqueeze was taking her third win on the grass, owner/trainer
Leo Azpurua Jr. was sending out MANICERO (Mass Media) in his first try on the
surface in the $75,000
Needles
S. to conclude Saturday’s stakes action at Calder. The dark bay didn’t
disappoint either, delivering a terrific stretch run to pass the pacesetting
Oligarch (Congrats) and hold off Star of Sarava (Sarava) by a half-length on the
wire. With Juan Leyva in the irons, the three-year-old got the 1 1/16 miles in
1:43 as the even-money favorite.

“He had to run hard, but he answered another question today (first time on
turf),” Leo Azpurua said. “He’s done everything we’ve asked of him and we’ve
tried to bring him along step by step. We want him to be around a long time.”

The winner’s share of the Needles purse pushed Manicero’s career earnings to
$369,008 and his mark now stands at 11-8-0-0. The colt has captured a total of
seven stakes thus far and will likely get a shot at graded company for only the
second time next out.