G1 Winner Wet Your Whistle Pre-Entered for Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint

Juvenile Fillies Gherardini, Tapit’s Girl, Targe Break Maidens Thursday

 

LAUREL, MD – Unable to defend his title in the Maryland Million Sprint last weekend, Big Bertha Stable and Stormy Stable’s Taco Supream lands instead in a stakes-quality allowance that highlights Friday’s nine-race program at Laurel Park.

 

First race post time is 12:25 p.m.

 

Taco Supream drew outside Post 8 in Race 6, a $47,000 third-level optional claiming allowance for 3-year-olds and up sprinting six furlongs on the main track with a scheduled post time of 2:56 p.m. He is one of two in the field from trainer Damon Dilodovico, along with Vince Campanella’s Fortunate Friends.

 

Stable rider Horacio Karamanos will be aboard Taco Supream, unraced since finishing sixth in the six-furlong Polynesian Stakes Sept. 5 at Laurel and listed as the 4-1 second choice on the morning line. He was the fourth of five Maryland-bred also-eligibles for the Oct. 24 Sprint, won in a 16-1 upset by Karan’s Notion. Maryland Million races only open up to state-breds when there are fewer than eight Maryland-sired horses entered; the Sprint had a full field of 10.

 

Among the other horses excluded from the Sprint were Polynesian winner and subsequent Frank J. De Francis (G3) runner-up Eastern Bay, and 2019 Star de Naskra winner Whereshetoldmetogo, also second in that year’s Gallant Bob (G3).

 

Friday’s race may turn out to be a more challenging spot for Taco Supream, having to not only face his stablemate but also fellow stakes winners Oldies But Goodies and Francatelli and stakes-placed Absentee and Hold Me Black, the latter racing second time off the claim for meet-leading trainer Claudio Gonzalez. Stakes winner Wendell Fong, two-for-three lifetime at Laurel, was also entered but ran Thursday at Belmont Park.

 

“It’s a tough, tough race, much tougher in my opinion than what the Maryland Million race ended up being without all the others getting in,” Dilodovico said. “He’ll definitely have his work cut out for him. My other horse in there has been training very forward, and he’s tough.

 

“[Francatelli] won a turf stake but his dirt races have been very solid. I wasn’t expecting to have to deal with that horse, or Claudio, one start off the claim,” he added. “It’s a tough race. Our horses, they have to do some work tomorrow, that’s for sure.”

 

Taco Supream, a gelded 5-year-old son of El Padrino, has been a model of consistency throughout his career with 18 top-three finishes from 25 starts including seven wins and nearly $340,000 in purse earnings, making his Polynesian effort a mystery to Dilodovico. Taco Supream emerged from the race with a bullet with a bullet half-mile work in 46.60 seconds Oct. 10, fastest of 74 horses.

 

“I was just expecting more of a kick from him that day. He ran a good race, but I was just expecting a bit more from him,” Dilodovico said. “But he gave me an awesome breeze, maybe a little bit too quick, a couple weeks ago so I’m racing off of that. I didn’t set him back down again, but it seems like he’s holding his fitness well and we’ll give him a shot.”

 

Taco Supream had four wins and three seconds from seven races last year but is winless in five tries in 2020. He did finish first as the favorite in six-furlong starter optional claimer Feb. 17 at Laurel but was disqualified to fourth for interference. Fortunate Friends has a record of 6-3-6 from 23 starts, going three-for-seven since joining Dilodovico this year.

 

“Taco’s been a hard-luck horse this year, for sure, but he always runs. His numbers are always very consistent. Definitely he’ll be tough,” Dilodovico said. “Fortunate Friends, is training well. He’s a funny horse to ride so I’m very excited to have Trevor [McCarthy] back on him second time. He’s not your average horse. He gave us a big effort two starts back and he looked a little bouncy last time so I’m excited. Maybe Trevor having a second mount on him will be more in tune with him.”

 

The narrow 7-2 program favorite is Maribeth Sanford and Lynch Racing’s Francatelli, fifth in the Jim McKay Turf Sprint Oct. 3 on the Preakness Stakes (G1) undercard at Pimlico Race Course. The 3-year-old City Zip gelding won the five-furlong King Corrie Stakes Sept. 12  at Woodbine off a 9 ½-length front-running off-the-turf optional claiming allowance romp going 5 ½ furlongs Aug. 15 at Laurel.

 

G1 Winner Wet Your Whistle Pre-Entered for Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint

 

David Palmer’s Maryland-based Wet Your Whistle, a track record-holder over Laurel Park’s world-class turf course, is pre-entered in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1) Saturday, Nov. 7 at Keeneland.

 

Wet Your Whistle, part of trainer Mike Trombetta’s string at Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md., is the last of 14 horses in the main body of the 5 ½-furlong grass race, which saw a total of 22 pre-entries.

 

A 5-year-old Stroll gelding, Wet Your Whistle graduated on debut in a July 2018 waiver maiden claimer at Laurel going six furlongs on the dirt. He returned last April to capture a 5 ½-furlong optional claiming allowance in 1:00.74 – a record for the Exceller course layout – to kick off a three-race win streak capped by the Highlander (G1) at Woodbine.

 

Wet Your Whistle has won two of three starts this year including his most recent, the Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational (G3) last out Oct. 4. His only loss came when sixth as the favorite after a slow start in the Sept. 7 Laurel Dash.

 

Another horse will Laurel connections pre-entered for the Breeders’ Cup is First Row Partners and Hidden Brook Farm’s Nay Lady Nay, winner of the All Along Stakes Sept. 7 over Laurel Park’s world-class turf course, in the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1) Nov. 7.

 

Nay Lady Nay is one of four horses trained by Chad Brown to be pre-entered in the race and the only one not in the main body, positioned as the third of four also-eligibles. The 4-year-old filly won the 2019 Mrs. Revere (G2) and 2020 Matchmaker (G3) immediately prior to her All Along score. Most recently she ran third in the Flower Bowl (G1) Oct. 10 at Belmont Park.

 

A pair of winners from the Oct. 3 Preakess Stakes (G1) program at Pimlico Race Course were pre-entered for Breeders’ Cup races – undefeated Chick Lang (G3) hero Yaupon in the $2 million Sprint (G1) and Laurel Dash winner Catman, on the also-eligible list for the $1 million Juvenile Turf (G1).

 

Fair Hill trainer Graham Motion pre-entered Invincible Gal, second in the Selima Stakes Oct. 3 at Pimlico, in the $1 million Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1), where she is the third also-eligible. Motion upset last year’s Juvenile Fillies Turf with Selima winner Sharing.

 

Notes: Madaket Stables, Wonder Stables and Robert LaPenta’s Gherardini ($5) trailed early, made an eye-catching move around the far turn and opened up once straightened for home to capture her debut by 5 ½ lengths as the 3-2 favorite in Race 5, an off-the-turf maiden special weight for 2-year-old fillies. Ridden by Sheldon Russell for his wife, trainer Brittany Russell, the daughter of champion Bernardini completed one mile in 1:41.41 over a sloppy main track … In the first of two divisions of a six-furlong waiver maiden claimer for 2-year-old fillies, Targe ($7.80) turned away favored Mischiefs Model through the stretch to win Race 2 in 1:12.79. The second division in Race 4 went in front-running fashion to Tapit’s Girl ($8.60) in 1:13.23 … The 20-cent Rainbow 6 was solved by one lucky bettor for a $10,361.70 payoff Thursday. There will be carryovers of $3,865.74 in the 50-cent Late Pick 5 and $766.99 in the $1 Super Hi-5 for Friday’s nine-race program. Tickets with four of five winners in Thursday’s Late Pick 5 each returned $41.55.