Kentucky Jockey Club winner El Kabeir will seek his second straight graded
stakes victory when he squares off against eight foes in Saturday’s Grade 3,
$200,000
Jerome at Aqueduct. Contested at a mile and 70 yards over the inner track,
the Jerome offers points on a 10-4-2-1 scale to the first four respective
finishes as part of the “Road to the Kentucky Derby” series.
El Kabeir pocketed 10 points toward a berth in the Kentucky Derby starting
gate when capturing the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs on
November 29, scoring by a head in wire-to-wire fashion, and also earned one
point for his fourth in the Champagne three starts back. He sandwiched a
runner-up effort in the November 2 Nashua between those efforts.
The gray son of Scat Daddy registered a field-best 100 BRIS Speed rating when
breaking his maiden by a 10-length margin at Saratoga last August.
Trained by John Terranova for Zayat Stables LLC, El Kabeir was purchased for
$250,000 at the OBS August yearling sale. Calvin Borel, who picked up the mount
in the Kentucky Jockey Club, will stick with the front-running colt.
Nasa steps up to face open stakes opponents in good form, posting a 2
1/4-length win in the restricted Pennsylvania Nursery on December 6. The Smarty
Jones colt received a 96 BRIS Speed rating last time, equaling the figure El
Kabeir earned in the Kentucky Jockey Club, and Nasa broke his maiden against
open company three starts back at Laurel Park, defeating maiden special weight
foes by a 9 1/4-length margin.
Regular rider Kendrick Carmouche sticks with the John Servis trainee.
Todd Pletcher will be represented by a pair of runners, Ostrolenka and Royal
Burgh, who will be looking to rebound from unplaced efforts in the November 29
Remsen on Aqueduct’s main oval. New York-bred stakes winner Ostrolenka is
eligible to show more after experiencing a rough trip from an outside post last
time and debut maiden winner Royal Burgh gained valuable seasoning while making
only his second career start in the 1 1/8-mile Resmsen.
Ackeret returns to New York for Rudy Rodriguez following a convincing
allowance win at Parx Racing in which he registered a 95 Speed rating and the
Michelle Nevin-trained Now We Are Free exits a respectable allowance/optional
claiming score at Laurel Park that netted a 91 Speed rating.
Rounding out the field are General Bellamy, a last-out maiden winner for Bill
Mott; Parx allowance winner Mini Cosmo; and the maiden Tencendur.
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