SPOTLIGHT PERFORMANCES
JANUARY 27
by James Scully
The spotlight shines in this column on recent performances that didn’t
receive much attention.
Group 3-placed POLYFIRST (Fr) (Poliglote [GB]) shone in her first U.S. start
after breaking slowly down the hill at Santa Anita on Saturday, closing very
quickly to reach the lead in midstretch and drawing off to a 1 1/2-length
victory in the about 6 1/2-furlong grass allowance. Trained by Richard Mandella,
the four-year-old filly carried her form up to distances of 1 1/4 miles last
year in France and she could be a serious factor in the distaff turf division
this year.
Mandella sent out the promising turf sophomore ULISTNINTOME (Wild Rush) later
on Saturday’s card and the dark bay colt also got away slowly when the gates
opened. Ulistnintome rated near the back of the pace through most of the
one-mile maiden special weight before unleashing a powerful five-wide move into
the stretch, dominating his rivals in the blink of an eye while finishing the
final eighth of a mile in :11 2/5. He’s the second foal from the unraced Milken
(Theatrical [Ire]), who is a half-sister to a French Group 1 winner and a full
to 2000 Del Mar Oaks (G1) runner-up Theoretically, and Ulistnintome is an
exciting prospect.
BUCKLAND MANOR (Bien Bien) continued to impress with an easy one-length
victory on Friday. He made short work of a talented group of optional claiming
rivals with a stalk-and-pounce trip, earning a 102 BRIS Speed rating, and will
return to stakes competition for trainer Paco Gonzalez. We wouldn’t be surprised
to see him record his first graded win soon.
EL ROBLAR (War Chant) offered a fine effort to break his maiden on Sunday at
Santa Anita, closing determinedly in deep stretch to win by three parts of a
length. Runner-up Canteen (Fusaichi Pegasus) was one of several well-regarded
rivals in the 6 1/2-furlong event, but he couldn’t match strides late with El
Roblar, who was making his first career start for trainer Bruce Headley. Out of
1997 Beaumont S. (G2) winner Screamer (Roanoke), the dark bay winner was
purchased for $250,000 as a Keeneland September yearling.
Last Thursday at Gulfstream Park, the stakes-placed PRIMARY SUSPECT
(Hennessy) opened his four-year-old campaign with a one-length optional claiming
victory, improving his overall mark to 7-4-1-1 while earning another terrific
Speed figure of 105. From the hot Mark Hennig stable, Primary Suspect’s only
off-the-board finish came in his graded bow, but the chestnut colt may be ready
to show much more at that level this season.
BANKRUPTCY COURT (Dixieland Band) continues to thrive on the grass for
trainer Richard Violette Jr., posting his second straight win when capturing
a turf allowance on Sunday by a half-length. The four-year-old colt, who made his
first grass attempt in September, is now 3-2-0 from five starts on the sod and
missed by only a neck when second in his only stakes outing, the Hawthorne Derby
(G3) in mid-October. Bankruptcy Court got a 102 Speed rating here and is headed
back to stakes events.
The word was out Saturday on firster ARCH ENEMY (Arch) at Gulfstream and she
did not disappoint at 3-5 odds, leading wire to wire for a 1 3/4-length success.
Trained by Steve Klesaris, the Kentucky-bred three-year-old filly was fully
extended in the final furlong, but she still got the job done in fine fashion.
On Sunday at Fair Grounds, OVER THE BORDER (Wagon Limit) made her first
career start an impressive one, rallying from just off the pace for a 2
1/4-length triumph going six furlongs. The sophomore lass hails from the same
female family of Pulpit and Tale of the Cat, and trainer Rebecca Maker usually
doesn’t crank up her runners for their first career attempt, so Over the Border
owns plenty of room for improvement. She’s one to watch.
PAWYNE PRINCESS (Saint Ballado) turned in a nice return performance on Monday
in New Orleans, closing from the back of the pack for a 1 1/2-length score in an
optional-claiming event. A close runner-up against males in the Federico Tesio
S. last April, she then finished second in the Black-Eyed Susan S. (G2) but went
to the sidelines about a month later. She returned in late October with an easy
win and has now won two straight.