Cotillions are Classy & a Blue Hen Head-Scratcher
By Dana Byerly, Hello Race Fans Co-founder
Super Saturday, which includes 13 graded races, is quickly approaching. Sunday isn’t too shabby either with five graded races for juveniles and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. But, before we get to the weekend, Rapid Redux will go for his 18th straight win on Friday night at Mountaineer! Zenyatta and Pepper’s Pride hold the current thoroughbred record of 19 consecutive wins.
Also on Friday night, NYRA analyst extraordinaire Andy Serling (@AndySerling) will be doing his usual 8:00 pm ET chat, this one will be specifically about the Super Saturday races. Serling’s chats are always informative and he’ll no doubt have some useful insights on Saturday’s races. He also actively tweets on race days at @AndySerling.
The Grade 2 Cotillion at Parx is shaping up to be one of the more interesting races of the weekend despite not being a Grade 1 or a Breeders’ Cup Challenge race. Grade 1 Acorn winner It’s Tricky (replay) and Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks winner Plum Pretty (replay) meet again, joined by Grade 1 Mother Goose winner Buster’s Ready (replay) and a few others. Could It’s Tricky and Plum Pretty become the next great female rivalry? Let’s hope so! Also at Parx on Saturday is third annual Ladies Jockey Competition, stop by Parx if you’re in the Philadelphia area.
Speaking of female rivalries, if you read our post from last week, you would have already known about trainer Jerry Hollendorfer’s desire to race Blind Luck in 2012 (thanks to Ernie Munick’s Breeders’ Cup video of the Delaware Handicap… from the summer!)
Impressive Grade 1 Spinaway winner Grace Hall (replay) is entered in the ungraded Blue Hen Stakes at Delaware Park. The move is a bit of head-scratcher considering that she ended the winning streaks of the well regarded Judy the Beauty and Georgie’s Angel last out. Perhaps trainer Anthony Dutrow wanted to keep her at home instead of shipping to Belmont Park the following weekend for the Grade 2 Frizette Stakes?. UPDATE (a head-scratcher no more): Apparently trainer Anthony Dutrow’s main goal was a two-turn race on the dirt, which ruled out the Frizette at Belmont (Ten Things) and the Alcibiades at Keeneland (h/t to Jessica Chapel!)
And finally, in our this week’s Weekly Roundup we discussed 3-year-olds meeting older horses for the first time, add Haskell winner Coil to that list in the Goodwood at Santa Anita. We’ll also have a Ten Things on the Goodwood tomorrow!
Reminiscing about last year’s action packed, star-studded Super Saturday? Relive it all again with our recap and replays!