A pair of stakes winners from the Juvenile Showcase, Brothersofthetime and
Flat Out Charming, are top draws for Saturday’s Festival Preview at Calder. The
four-race event serves a precursor to the Festival of the Sun, which will be
held at the South Florida oval on October 12.
The $85,000
Foolish Pleasure for two-year-olds and
Brave Raj
for two-year-old fillies, both at a mile and 70 yards on the main track, are
preps for the last legs of the Florida Stallion Stakes Series for two-year-olds,
the 1 1/16-mile In Reality division and the 1 1/16-mile My Dear Girl division
for fillies. The $70,000
Needles
for three-year-olds and
Judy’s
Red Shoes for three-year-old fillies, both at 1 1/16 miles on turf, are
preps for the Tropical Park Derby and the Francis A. Genter.
In the eight-horse Foolish Pleasure, Brothersofthetime will seek a second
straight stakes tally following his nose win in the August 24 Seacliff. Trained
by Antonio Sano, the once-beaten son of Bob and John keeps Fernando Jara in the
saddle. Seacliff runner-up East Hall will look to exact a measure of revenge,
and third-placer D N A Approved (Hear No Evil) can not be dismissed from
consideration. Affirmed runner-up Best Plan Yet is another top contender.
Flat Out Charming highlights a field of nine in the Brave Raj. The Flatter
filly broke her maiden by a 5 3/4-length margin at Gulfstream before posting a
nose win in the August 24 Lindsay Frolic, edging out Light Bringer, who will
also return on Saturday. Antonio Gallardo stays aboard the Rodolfo
Garcia-trained Flat Out Charming. Look of a Star finished only a length back in
third last time and fourth-placer Jackie’s Daughter is entered as well. A pair
of fillies who placed in in the Susan’s Girl and Desert Vixen divisions of the
Florida Stallion Series, Holiday Magic and Quinnkat, add further depth to the
Brave Raj line-up.
Boy of Summer is the lone stakes winner in the nine-horse Needles, but he
will need to improve upon a sixth in the August 3 Naked Greed to challenge.
Statutorial and Midnight Cello, the runner-up and third-place finishers in the
Naked Greed, are threats to garner their first stakes tally in this spot and
Padilla will make his stakes debut for Bill White following a sharp
front-running allowance score.
A full field of 12 will square off in the Judy’s Red Shoes and Nicki
Starshine is the one to beat following a nice score in her 2013 debut, the
August 3 Crystal Rail on Calder’s turf. The White-trained sophomore filly was
making her first start since winning the John Franks Juvenile Fillies Turf last
November. Jeffrey Sanchez picks up the mount on the daughter of Milwaukee Brew.
Dreaming of Sophia will make her turf debut in good form, posting a 6 1/2-length
decision in the off-the-turf Cellars Shiraz at Gulfstream recently, and Fab
Flowers should appreciate the class relief following a couple of starts against
stakes rivals at Saratoga.
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