Goldwood Ready to Shine in $100,000 Sensible Lady Turf Dash

LAUREL, MD – Tom O’Grady’s Dirty, who has shown a distinct fondness for the Laurel Park turf, will be looking to clean up in Saturday’s $100,000 Laurel Dash presented by Fidelity First and Blackwell Real Estate.

The Laurel Dash, a turf stakes for 3-year-olds and up at 5 ½ furlongs, will be one of eight stakes worth $1.3 million on the September to Remember card that will feature the $250,000 Xpressbet Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash (G3) and the $200,000 Baltimore/Washington International Turf Cup (G3).

The Jeremiah Englehart-trained son of Maclean’s Music will bring a record of 2-1-0 from three starts at Laurel, including a late-closing triumph under Jorge Vargas Jr. in the 5 ½-furlong King Leatherbury Stakes in April.

Not surprisingly, Dirty registered back-to-back bullet workouts on turf at Laurel in preparation for a start in the Laurel Dash, which drew a field of 10.

“I know he’s doing really. Charlie Lynch, Cal’s son who is my assistant at Laurel, has been raving about how he’s training. When he feels good about a horse, that’s usually a good sign to me,” said the New York-based Englehart, who has a division in Maryland.

The 4-year-old colt is winless in three starts since winning the King Leatherbury, finishing sixth in the Jaipur (G1) at Belmont before coming up short in a second-place finish in the Ben’s Cat at Laurel as the 4-5 favorite and finishing a never-threatening sixth in the Da Hoss Stakes at Colonial Downs.

“The last couple races, I thought we got a little relaxed as far our game plan and Jorge’s game plan went, [we were] thinking if we just lay back, he’s going to close. He did that in that first race of the year [in the King Leatherbury] at Laurel – there was also a hot pace that day,” Englehart said. “He’s a horse that earlier on in his career he showed a fair amount of speed. He could lay close and track. So I think that’s what we’d like to try to do with him – lay closer, let him get away from there and not get him against the bridle, and try to be a little closer.”

Dirty showed versatility in three winning efforts in 2018. He stalked the pace in a five furlong turf race for $40,000 maiden claimers at Gulfstream Park in March, before scoring a front-running victory in a six-furlong tarter allowance at Belmont Park two starts later. He came right back to win a 5 ½ allowance at Laurel from well off the early pace in his next start.

New York-based Manuel Franco will venture to Maryland to ride Dirty in the Laurel Dash, as well as He Hate Me in the De Francis Memorial Dash, and Up the Ante in the Baltimore/Washington International Turf Cup.

Englehart will also be represented by Gold Square LLC’s Square Shooter in the Laurel Dash. The 5-year-old gelded son of Trappe Shot, who will be ridden by Vargas, finished fourth in the Lucky Coin at Penn National last time out after winning a Laurel starter allowance..

R. Larry Johnson’s Oldies But Goodies, who defeated Dirty in the Ben’s Cat, is scheduled to clash again with the Englehart trainee. Also a 4-year-old son of Maclean’s Music, Oldies But Goodies faded to sixth over a yielding turf course last time out in the Laurel optional claiming allowance won by Square Shooter. Alex Cintron has the mount.

Pewter Stable’s Dubini enters the Laurel Dash off a second-place finish behind Pure Sensation in the Turf Monster (G3) at Parx. The Kathleen Demas-trained son of Gio Ponti missed the break in the five-furlong sprint before rallying for second over a yielding course. Daniel Centeno has the mount.

Waldorf Racing Stables LLC’s Fielder, who finished fourth after a slow start in the Turf Monster, will return Saturday, as will Emerald Racing Stable LLC’s Nice Tune, who finished sixth at Parx.

Rounding out the field will be Clever Triad, Dr. Shane, Pool Winner and Snokin Nitro        
Goldwood Ready to Shine in $100,000 Sensible Lady Turf Dash

Colts Neck Stables LLC’s Goldwood is set for a return to Laurel Park for Saturday’s $100,000 Sensible Lady Turf Dash after enjoying a banner campaign over the Monmouth Park turf course.

The 5-year-old daughter of Medaglia d’Oro will enter the 5 ½-furlong sprint for fillies and mares on Saturday’s September to Remember card on a four-stakes winning streak.

“She’s had four races at Monmouth and she’s been very good at Monmouth. There’s no more races for her there and this race comes up at a good time,” trainer Jorge Duarte Jr. said. “She’s doing good, so we’ll take a shot.”

Goldwood has employed her generous turn of early speed to prevail Politely, Unbridled Elaine, Incredible Revenge and Safely Kept in succession at distances of 5 ½ furlongs or six furlongs.

“The turf course at Monmouth trends toward speed, but I don’t think she needs to be in front. She’s won from off the pace and she’s won on the lead. She’s a versatile filly and she’s smart. If there’s somebody that needs the lead, she can stalk,” said Duarte, who took over as trainer for Colts Neck Stables in December after serving as a longtime assistant to Alan Goldberg. “She’s been dominating these races at Monmouth, taking it from the word go, but Laurel has the longer stretch so we’ll see how it unfolds.”

Goldwood has held her own in three starts at Laurel Park for Goldberg, who is still closely associated with Colts Neck Stables. She finished second in her second career start and broke her maiden in front-running fashion in her fourth start in 2017.  The homebred mare captured an optional claiming allowance from off the pace at Laurel Park in 2018.

Goldwood started her 2019 campaign with a third-place finish in the Captiva Island at Gulfstream Park, where she won back-to-back races during the 2017-2018 Championship Meet.

“She’s had firmer ground to run on this year. It hasn’t been as much a washout as it was last year. She always liked the Gulfstream-type turf course, kind of on the firmer side, so this year we’ve kind of got lucky,” Duarte said. “She’s been healthy and the turf has been in our favor, so she’s put it all together. She’s got a lot of confidence. She’s kind of full of herself right now.”

Jose Ferrer has the return mount aboard Goldwood.

Backwards Stable’s Fire Key is slated to make a title defense in the Sensible Lady, in which she closed from well back to prevail by a nose last year. The 6-year-old daughter of Friesan Fire finished second behind Always Thinking in the 2017 Sensible Lady.

Trained by James Ryerson, Fire Key has had a productive 2019 season, winning the License Fee in April, finishing second in the Intercontinental (G3) at Belmont Park, and registering a runner-up finish in the Caress at Saratoga.

Julian Pimentel will ride Fire Key.

Hickory Plains’ Fear No Evil returns to Laurel Park for the Sensible Lady, in which she finished third, a nose and a head behind Fire Key last year. The Tom Albertrani-trained daughter of Line of David, who finished less than a length behind Goldwood in the Incredible Revenge at Monmouth last time out, broke her maiden in 2017 and also won an optional claiming allowance last year at Laurel Park. Jorge Vargas Jr. has the call.

Trainer Ian Wilkes is represented by two 4-year-old fillies in Sensible Lady entries – Denholtz Stables, West Point Thoroughbreds and Head of Plains Partners LLC’s Originator and Ralph Ebert’s La Dame Blanche.

Originator, a multiple stakes-placed daughter of Artie Schiller last year, has raced twice this year, both times at Saratoga, where she won an optional claiming allowance July 19 before finishing fourth last time out. Feargal Lynch has the mount. Trevor McCarty will ride La Dame Blanche, who was twice stakes-placed at Fair Grounds this year.

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners’ Escapade, an impressive optional claiming allowance winner for trainer Jonathan Thomas last time out; is slated to make her stakes debut Saturday. The 4-year-old daughter of More Than Ready has been first or second in five of six starts on turf. Sheldon Russell has the return mount.

Mr. Al’s Gal, Unaquoi, Dance Or Stroll, Rocky Policy, She’s All Skeet, Souper Echo and Fame Feather round out the field.