Wise Dan, Close Hatches among stars expected at Keeneland

Wise Dan is likely to have a rematch with Seek Again, Optimizer and Kaigun in the Shadwell Turf Mile (Keeneland/Coady Photography) Morton Fink’s two-time reigning Horse of the Year Wise Dan, Juddmonte Farms’ Close Hatches and a prospective First Lady field that includes five Grade 1 winners highlight a stellar lineup on tap for next weekend’s Fall Stars Weekend to open the 2014 Keeneland Fall Meet. Fall Stars Weekend features nine graded stakes, five of which are Grade 1s, and seven races that are “Win and You’re In” contests for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships to be held October 31-November 1 at Santa Anita. Trained by Charlie LoPresti, Wise Dan tops a list of likely starters for Saturday’s Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile, the first $1 million race in Keeneland history. Wise Dan has won his past 13 races on grass with his most recent turf setback coming in the 2011 Shadwell Turf Mile. A “Win and You’re In” for the Breeders’ Cup Mile, the Shadwell is also likely to lure Kaigun, Optimizer, Sayaad, Seek Again, Silver Max and Two Notch Road. Listed as possible are Five Iron, Grand Arch, Summer Front and Za Approval. The Grade 1, $400,000 First Lady, scheduled for Saturday at a mile on the grass, is expected to attract defending champion Better Lucky along with Grade 1 winners Centre Court, Dayatthespa, Discreet Marq and Somali Lemonade. Filimbi, Kitten’s Point, Sassy Kitten and Shuruq are likewise probable, while Istanford is possible.

Saturday’s Grade 1,
$500,000 Breeders’ Futurity, serves as a “Win and You’re In” for the
Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, and the likely contenders list includes Bold Conquest, Carpe Diem, Dekabrist, Firespike, Hashtag
Bourbon, Hero of Humor, Keen Ice, Sharm and W V Jetsetter. Conquest Tsunami
is regarded as possible.

The Grade 2, $200,000 Thoroughbred Club of America is a “Win and You’re In”
for the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint. Saturday’s projected field consists
of Anahauc, Janis’s Joy, Leigh Court, R Free Roll,
Southern Honey, Speedinthruthecity and Stonetastic. The possibles are Munnings Sister,
Northern Passion, Spring in the Air and Warm Breeze.

Ashbrook Farm’s Southern Honey completed her major preparations Sunday by
working a half-mile in :48 3/5 on Keeneland’s new dirt track. Going out on her
own, the Rusty Arnold filly posted fractions of :12 1/5 and :24 2/5 and galloped
out five-eighths in 1:02 4/5.

“I like the way she did it,” Arnold said of the three-year-old filly’s third work
over the main track here since returning to Keeneland from Saratoga. “I know she
has had as many works as anybody here.”

Southern Honey won the May 26 Winning Colors at Churchill Downs in her only
prior attempt versus older distaffers. She then shipped to Saratoga where she
finished ninth in the Test at seven furlongs and third in the
Prioress at six furlongs.

“She didn’t run well in the Test but the Prioress was a pretty decent race for
her,” Arnold said. “The filly that beat her by a neck for second (Miss Behaviour)
came back and won the Charles Town Oaks by almost 10 lengths.”

Rounding out Saturday’s stakes quintet is the Grade 3, $150,000 Woodford,
which will likely feature turf sprinters Berlino Di Tiger, Console, Marchman, Mongol Bull, No Nay Never, Positive Side, Sharp
Sensation and Tell All You Know. Big Blue Spirit, City of Weston and
Escapist are possible.

Close Hatches might be scaring off competition in the Spinster, but Don’t Tell Sophia (right, green silks) is game to try again (Oaklawn/Coady Photography) Close Hatches, trained by Bill Mott, is undefeated in four 2014 starts and expected to make her first Keeneland start in next Sunday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Spinster. The “Win and You’re In” for the Breeders’ Cup Distaff is set to have a small field. At this point, only two others are expected to take on Close Hatches — Don’t Tell Sophia and Molly Morgan. The smile on trainer Philip Sims’ face was all anyone needed to see to judge his appraisal of the Sunday work by Don’t Tell Sophia. With jockey Joe Rocco Jr. up and working on her own, Don’t Tell Sophia covered five furlongs over a fast track after the morning renovation break in 1:00 1/5. Her bullet move ranked as the fastest of 23 at the distance. Fractions on the work were :12 2/5 :24 3/5 and :36 4/5, and she galloped out six furlongs in 1:13 4/5. “It looked like she liked the track,” Sims said of the six-year-old mare’s first work over the new Keeneland surface. “She had been at Churchill Downs and I didn’t bring her back here until last Wednesday.” Don’t Tell Sophia has won three of four starts this year, with her only setback coming in the March 15 Azeri, in which she finished third behind Close Hatches.

“She had a quarter-crack that popped five days before the Azeri,” Sims
said. “She ran in a bar shoe in the Azeri. The quarter-crack was way back in the
heel where you couldn’t patch it. She belongs to me, so I just gave her the time
off.”

Don’t Tell Sophia returned from a six-month layoff to win the Locust Grove at
Churchill Downs on September 6 defeating among others likely Spinster
rival Molly Morgan.

Also next Sunday, Keeneland will stage its “Win and You’re In” for the
Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, the Grade 3,
$250,000 Bourbon. Can’t Happen Here, Chief Kitten, Croninthebarbarian, Danny
Boy, International Star, It’ll Be Fine, Kutuzov, Luck of the Kitten, Majestico,
Silver Ride, Thirtysilverpieces and Zandar are all projected to line up.
Possible is Conquest Tsunami, who is also under consideration for Saturday’s
Breeders’ Futurity on dirt.

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