The fillies begin the card in the first half of the double with the first of three divisions each for a purse of around $70,000. The daughters of a couple of great trotting mares headline the opener with Passionate Glide's first foal On The Bright Side perhaps the most accomplished of the sextet. She faces the rapidly improving Bluff (a daughter of Blur) who just lowered the half mile track world record to 1:54- in her last start at Delaware.
The fourth race is a rematch of the one - two finishers from this year's Hambletonian Oaks, Personal Style and Win Missy B. Personal Style is closing in on a half million dollar season for Brittany Farms and trainer Nifty Norman. Win Missy B has enjoyed stellar campaigns at both two and three with career earnings well in excess of $1 million. Charlie Norris has developed and managed her from the start for prolific owner, Bob Key.
Current leader in Horse of the Year polls, Check Me Out offers a reason to stay for the entire card as she is slated to compete in race 11. In the midst of another sublime season for Charlie Iannazzo and trainer/ co-owner Ray Schnittker, the multiple world champ is as sharp as ever and comes to Lexington after vanquishing a pretty solid field of older horses from the nine hole on a sloppy track at Tioga in her last start. Maven would likely be the star of any other season, but was just born in the wrong year. She'll give it another go on Sunday. Valdonna is in the best form of her career and poses an upset threat.
The colts race for a total of $227,000 and populate races two, five and twelve, with Guccio and Magic Tonight the logical choices in the first split.
Little Brown Fox was justthisclose to winning the Canadian Classic his last start and has a very high cruising speed. He has earned over $700,000 in a solid campaign for owners Christine Takter, Brittany Farms and the Fieldings, John & Jim. He'll be the punter's choice in race five, facing a solid if unspectacular field.
The twelfth race features Kentucky Sires Stakes champion Fusion Man facing open stakes types again after a solid second in the Old Oaken Bucket over the Delaware half in his last start. Tyler Smith has an excellent chance to add a Grand Circuit victory to his rapidly broadening resume at age 19 with the colt owned by TD Trot and trained by his father Jeff.
Perhaps the most intriguing race of the afternoon is race 10, the only overnight on the card. That one is a $7,500 Open Handicap prep for next's week's Allerage Farms Open Trot. The race features two of the titans of the division with this year's sensation Chapter Seven and the venerable $3.5 million winning Arch Madness among the entrants.
Sunday's post time is 1:00PM, as will be the case Thursday-Sunday next week. For further information, visit the Red Mile website.
