It has been nearly two years since the five-year-old Prayer for Relief has
won a stakes, or any race for that matter. The son of Jump Start’s prayers for
relief might be answered Saturday night in the familiar surroundings of Prairie
Meadows, in suburban Des Moines, where he heads a field of six older horses in
the Grade 3, $300,000
Prairie
Meadows Cornhusker Handicap at 1 1/8 miles.
Won last year by eventual Breeders’ Cup Classic hero Fort Larned, the
Cornhusker highlights a card that also includes the Grade 3, $250,000
Iowa Derby
and the Grade 3, $200,000
Iowa Oaks.
Prayer for Relief was a hot commodity as a three-year-old in 2011, where he
kicked off a three-race win streak at Prairie by taking the Iowa Derby. He
latter added the West Virginia Derby and Super Derby to his trophy collection,
but has not reached the winner’s circle since the latter race in September of
that year.
Transferred to trainer Steve Asmussen last summer, Prayer for Relief has run
second in three of his past four starts, twice to stablemate Master Rick in the
Lone Star Park Handicap and Texas Mile earlier this season. If he can avoid the
type of wide trips he endured at Lone Star, the Zayat Stables representative
should be difficult to beat.
Silver Max, one of the leading three-year-olds on grass last season, will
stick to dirt for the time being following a 9 1/2-length romp in the June 1
Opening Verse at Churchill Downs. Facing only three other rivals in that
off-the-turf test, Silver Max opened up a five-length lead at the first call and
was under minimal pressure to finish the job.
Always known for his early foot, Silver Max might face pace pressure from
Taptowne, the Oaklawn Handicap runner-up who faded late in two subsequent
allowance attempts at Churchill. Another with a bit of positional speed is Red
Lead, a stakes winner at Sunland Park this past winter.
Ian Wilkes, the trainer of Fort Larned, will saddle the allowance-class
Nicklaus Way. Longshot Tiz Ready completes the field.
The 1 1/16-mile Iowa Oaks for fillies is the more intriguing of the two
undercard stakes for three-year-olds.
Most of the betting action will center on Bob Baffert’s Black-Eyed Susan
winner Fiftyshadesofhay, and the Maggi Moss-owned So Many Ways, who captured the
Spinaway at Saratoga last summer and most recently rallied to beat 12 rivals in
the seven-furlong Eight Belles at Churchill Downs.
Others of note are Grade 2 winner Seaneen Girl and Hitechnoweenie, who
captured the local prep, the June 1 Panthers, by three lengths.
The Baffert-trained Manando, third in the Affirmed Handicap and the Sham this
season, should be prominent from the start in the Iowa Derby at 1 1/16 miles.
Also likely to show speed is Our Double Play, who defeated returning rival
Bashaar in the June 1 Prairie Mile.
Other potential contenders are Betweenhereancool, a recent Churchill
allowance winner for Steve Asmussen, and the stakes-placed Looking Cool, who
went unplaced in a tough renewal of Churchill’s Matt Winn two weeks ago.
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