Friday Night's Previews
Last year's Champion juvenile AUGUST RAIN faces some tough opposition in his first appearance of the season on a night that features seven highly-competitive races
LUCKY COWBOY put three lengths on the field in an impressive gate-to-wire maiden win earlier this month on only his second career start. A repeat of that and he’ll take some stopping. RANCHO RED makes his Hastings debut but is running for the sixth time this year after a winter campaign in San Francisco and a single start in Seattle. The form’s not easy to decipher but he’s raced mostly at sprint distances and, if the ratings translate, should be a major threat. STANFORD NORTH came agonisingly close last time when just nodded out of it at the wire, with stablemate DIVAANY behind. They shouldn’t be far apart again.
An impressive five-length, gate-to-wire winner on her season debut, HOAX had already flown by the time DREAMB got going when they met at the beginning of May, but it should be a closer affair today. Hoax returns to the same level as that win, after fading last time in what was a stiffer challenge, while Dreamb, who was running-on well, appears for the first time since that second-place finish. HARTLEY MANOR takes a small step down after running well enough, before fading late on what was only her second lifetime start, to suggest she can be a factor.
Held up towards the rear by Amadeo Perez, SOLARITY spotted the impressive gate-to-wire winner DAPHNE a half-dozen lengths and was closing-in rapidly when they met two weeks ago. This promises to be a juicy rematch on the path to future Stakes competition. LOLA M split two useful sorts on her season debut, but will need to step up again to win this, while the at times enigmatic ARUNDEL CASTLE can be a danger if reproducing the form that saw her take last year’s CTHS Sale Stakes.
Last season’s Champion juvenile AUGUST RAIN makes his eagerly-awaited reappearance, although this is certainly no gimme. He will have to confirm last season’s form, which saw him beat today’s rivals VECTOR, PISCO and WEALTHY TEXAN (who has been scattering his work tab with bullets of late), and it will be fascinating to see who exits this contest with the bragging rights ahead of the year’s major 3yo races. Pisco, in particular, may be a handful. He already has a run under his girth and looked thoroughly professional when beating subsequent winner Bakburner earlier this month. DEAL EM, meanwhile, makes his Hastings debut, although he should be fit after an unplaced effort at Turf Paradise in April on the back of a winter campaign in California. He’s not easy to weigh up but certainly doesn’t look out of his depth.
LONIE MO held off EDDIE’S GIRL narrowly when they chased home impressive winner Avana last time and both should feature prominently again here in what looks an above average collection of maidens. DAZ LIN FORCE, the daughter of the very nimble Daz Lin Dawn, has been working well and makes her season debut after two solid juvenile performances in tough company last year. SUNBLAZE, a full-sister to multiple Stakes winning filly Sunburst, has also been working with great gusto of late and she went into many notebooks following an eye-catching career debut in Eddie’s Girl and Lonie Mo’s race. Drawn wide, she cruised through the field after understandably displaying some greenness earlier in the race and looks an exciting prospect.
If it wasn’t for bad luck, WANDALITA would have had no luck at all on her season debut when splitting today’s rivals NO PEOPLE and LUCY TREASURE. She hopped in the air at the start and then, full of running, found herself stuck behind a wall of horses on the home turn. Forced into a narrowing gap on the rail by her rider, she then had the door slammed shut by No People and, clipping heels, was extremely fortunate not to have come down. The stewards took the view that she had been unfairly impeded and she was placed first. A clear run today and she may not need the stewards. ARIKARA, meanwhile, goes for a rapid hat-trick of wins after two gate-to-wire victories; although this represents a tougher challenge. INDYETTA was never a factor on her recent season debut but, ignore that, and she is a major player here based on pretty much any of her form last season. Stakes performers MARYS TAPPIN SHOES and MATSQUI should both be different propositions now they’ve had a run under their girths and can’t be ruled out of what is a very competitive heat.
Trainer Steve Henson has been in irresistible form so far this season and he saddles once-raced DELTA SUNRISE here in a race that, on paper, shouldn’t take too much winning. It doesn’t hurt that she is also a half-sister to the former CTHS Sales Stakes winner Irish Lyric, as well as to the former Champion and Horse of the Year, Lord Rosberg. There’s little between DEANARROW and BORROWED EQUITY, who are both making their third starts of the season, with the latter just shading the former when they met earlier this month. They should hold the key to this if Delta Sunrise isn’t up to the task.
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