LAUREL, MD. 01-10-13--- Despite the irony that the What A Summer Stakes is presented in the dead of winter, eight fillies and mares will meet the starter in Saturday’s $125,000 feature at Laurel Park.

The six-furlong What A Summer is headed by Bold Affair (6-5), a Howard Wolfendale trainee who won five stakes in 2012 (Conniver, Primonetta, Skipat, Maryland Million Distaff and Geisha) but ended the year with a disappointing third place finish as odds-on favorite in the one-mile Thirty Eight Go Go Stakes on Dec. 22. Abel Castellano will be back aboard the daughter of Two Punch.

“I am happy with the outside draw. She just doesn’t seem to do her best running when bottled up inside,” said Wolfendale. “This race is coming back a little quicker than I would like. I would have rather trained her right up to the Barbara Fritchie (G2 sprint on Feb. 16) but this looks like a good spot and she is shortening up. She is so big, with a nice long stride and does things so easily.”

Ollie Figgins has worked Dance to Bristol (3-1) at Bowie and Laurel since her last start, a runner-up finish in an allowance at Charles Town. The Speightstown filly has never been worse than second in five races at Laurel, including a victory in the Marshua Stakes last February. Joshua Navarro is her rider.

Made to Love Her (5-1) started last year in California and finished the year in Maryland with a third place effort in the Willa On The Move Stakes. Now trained by Charles Simon at Penn National, the Stevie Wonderboy filly won the Moccasin Stakes at Hollywood Park in November. Josean Ramirez has the mount.

Rudy Rodriguez sent Enchante (6-1) from New York to Pimlico Race Course in April for the Primonetta Stakes and earned a minor share behind Bold Affair. The daughter of Bluegrass Cat will have Horacio Karamanos in the saddle.

Parvenu (12-1) has won back-to-back races but has failed to hit the board in three career stakes starts. John Servis trains the Rockport Harbor mare. Jeremy Rose has the riding assignment.

Defy Gravity (15-1) was winless in twelve tries last year but did win the Smart Halo Stakes here as a 2-year-old in 2011. No rider is named on the Lori Testerman trainee.

West Virginia bred Silver Heart (20-1) won four races for Gary Capuano in 2012 including a stakes at Charles Town and finished second in the Maryland Million Distaff, 13-1/4 lengths behind Bold Affair. Julian Pimentel picks up the mount on the eight-year-old Lion Hearted mare.

Island Bound (20-1) won the Winning Colors (G3) at Churchill Downs in June but finished fifth in the Willa On The Move Stakes in her first start for trainer Katy Voss. The Speightstown offspring will be ridden by Oliver Castillo.
 

About Laurel Park

Laurel Park is a Stronach Group company, North America’s leading Thoroughbred racetrack owner/operator. The Stronach Group racetracks include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park & Casino, Golden Gate Fields, Portland Meadows, Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, home of the world-famous Preakness. The company owns and operates the Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida and is one of North America's top race horse breeders through its award-winning Adena Springs operation. The Stronach Group is one of the world's largest suppliers of pari-mutuel wagering systems, technologies and services. Its companies include AmTote, a global leader in wagering technology; Xpressbet, an Internet and telephone account wagering service; and Monarch Content Management, which acts as a simulcast purchase and sales agent of horseracing content for numerous North American racetracks and wagering outlets. The Stronach Group is also a major producer of televised horse racing programming through its HRTV cable and satellite network and is North America's premier supplier of virtual online horse racing games, as well as a leading producer of social media content for the horseracing industry.