For Opinion, click here for View from the Racetrack Grandstand

Thursday, March 5, 2020

Distaff Open, Sire Stakes headline Friday Cal Expo program


By Mark Ratzky, publicity – Cal Expo Harness

A $6,700 filly and mare Open Pace and a pair of $7,000 California Sire Stakes for the 3-year-olds get the marquee treatment Friday evening at Cal Expo.

Watch and Wager LLC will present 11 races and first post is 6:10. The Sire Stakes are the first and fifth events on the evening, while the Distaff Open occupies the sixth-race slot.

Alwaysalittlemore will look to get back to the winner’s circle after being disqualified from victory last weekend for going inside the pylons in the stretch in that clash at the top for the female pacers.

A 6-year-old daughter of Always A Virgin, she carries the banner of Maria Alvarez and Terrence Smith with Edwin Hernandez training and Luke Plano at the helm.

Alwaysalittlemore has posed for pictures following three of her seven starts this season, including a 1:52 3/5 lifetime best performance, and two of those scores have come at this Open level.

Looking at the Sire Stakes, Its Pointless is a standout in the male division after dominating his rivals in coast-to-coast fashion in the initial stakes dance two weeks ago. The Mark Anderson homebred is by Kent’s On Nuke, hails from the Gordie Graham barn and will once again be piloted by James Kennedy.

Prom Queen accounted for the first distaff Sire Stakes two weeks ago, upsetting favored Debit Or Credit that night. Prom Queen is a daughter of Little Steven who was bred by Robin Clements and Desomer Stables Inc., is owned by Clements and has Nick Roland on a return assignment.

Its Pointless leaves little doubt

Its Pointless got right to the point in the first California Sire Stakes of the year for the sophomore pacing males, motoring directly to the front for James Kennedy and reporting home with five and three-quarter lengths to spare in a snappy 1:57 4/5 debut.

A Mark Anderson homebred who hails from the Gordie Graham barn, Its Pointless had showed some promise in his two qualifiers and this was not lost on the crowd, who bet him down to 1-5 in what proved to be an overlay.

The son of Kent’s On Nuke was on cruise control from the very beginning, never having less than a two and half-length lead once the gate rolled and widened when the field hit the stretch.

“For this being his first start, he was very professional,” Kennedy related. “He’s pretty smart and I was very impressed with his effort.”

Its Pointless is back to work Friday night in hopes of landing another Sire Stakes trophy on the mantle for the Anderson/Graham combination.


                                               ***

There is a carryover of $19,269 in 10-cent Single 6 Friday night, with the sequence beginning on the fifth race.

There are also two wagers offered here with a reduced 16 percent takeout rate, the 20-cent Pick 5 and 20-cent Pick 4, and the Pick 4 comes with a $40,000 guaranteed gross pool on Saturdays and $30,000 on Fridays.