The fall meet at Del Mar launches this weekend, with one listed stakes race carded on each of three days where the turf meets the surf.
Highlighting that trio is Saturday's Kathryn Crosby, a one-mile contest on the turf for fillies and mares with nine entrants. Phil D'Amato's Dolce Zel is the morning line favorite.
Turf contests are the highlight on Saturday at both Aqueduct and Churchill Downs; the New York card features the G2 Red Smith and the G3 Pebbles, while the Kentucky one features the G3 River City.
Churchill's Saturday program will also showcase talented female sprinter Wicked Halo as she chases her ninth career win in the $300,000 Dream Supreme.
Additionally on Saturday: a pair of graded stakes are on offer at Woodbine, three listed stakes are carded for Laurel Park, and Gulfstream will host a pair of sprint stakes for 2-year-olds.
Saturday
3:43 p.m. – Grade 2 Red Smith Stakes at Aqueduct
Trainer Christophe Clement is hopeful that third time will be the charm with multiple Grade 1-placed millionaire Soldier Rising as he makes his third straight start in the $300,000 Red Smith going 11 furlongs over the inner turf at Aqueduct. Soldier Rising finished a respective third [2021] and ninth [2022] in the past two runnings of the Red Smith. This year, the 5-year-old Frankel gelding has finished a late-rallying second in four Grade 1 turf events on the circuit.
Mike Maker will unleash a pair of formidable contenders in Cross Border [post 4, Manny Franco] and Red Run [post 9, Ruben Silvera].
Cross Border enters from a redeeming triumph in the 12-furlong Cape Henlopen on September 16 at Delaware Park. The evergreen English Channel 9-year-old brags field-high earnings of $1,333,258 through a record of 52-13-8-7, including back-to-back victories in the Grade 2 Bowling Green at Saratoga in 2020-21. His lone victory at the Big A took place at the Red Smith distance in a November 2019 allowance event.
Red Run was a last out fourth in the Sycamore after a 1 1/4-length allowance triumph in September going nine furlongs over the Churchill Downs turf. The 4-year-old Gun Runner colt has finished no worse than fourth since being claimed by Maker in March from Hall of Fame conditioner Steve Asmussen.
Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher will saddle Lost Ark [post 1, Irad Ortiz, Jr.] following a triumph in an off-the-turf Jockey Club Derby Invitational on October 7 at Belmont at the Big A. Lost Ark is a half-brother to last year's Champion 3-Year-Old Filly Nest.
Nineeleventurbo [post 6, Joel Rosario] makes the journey to New York for Hall of Fame trainer Neil Drysdale after capturing a 12-furlong second-level allowance on October 14 over good ground at Keeneland. The 6-year-old More Than Ready gelding was previously second in the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap in September, finishing 1 1/4 lengths behind Grade 1-winning millionaire Gold Phoenix.
5:12 p.m. – Grade 2 Bessarabian Stakes at Woodbine
Awesome Treat, a 5-year-old daughter of Awesome Patriot-Tiz a Treat, looks for her first stakes success in Saturday's $175,000 Bessarabian Stakes (G2), at Woodbine. The seven-furlong main track feature for fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and upward, has drawn 14 starters, including Awesome Treat.
Trained by Steve Attard, the dark bay mare, fourth in last year's Bessarabian, heads into Saturday's affair off a pleasing runner-up finish in the Ontario Fashion (G3) on October 14. Dismissed at 38-1, Awesome Treat rallied stoutly down the lane to miss top prize by a half-length in the six-furlong test.
Other starters include multiple graded stakes winner Our Flash Drive, along with graded stakes winners Loyalty, Midnight Stroll, Miss Dracarys, Ready To Venture (GB), Spun Glass and multiple graded stakes winner Artie's Princess.
5:35 p.m. – Grade 3 River City Stakes at Churchill Downs
Wise Dan Stakes (Grade 2) winner Stitched headlines an over-subscribed field of 15 turf specialists that entered Saturday's 44th running of the $300,000 River City Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs.
Trained by Greg Foley, Stitched achieved his biggest honors winning the Wise Dan three starts ago at Ellis Park. The 4-year-old son of Mizzen Mast has won six races overall and also sports stakes victories in last year's Caesar's and Mystic Lake Derby. Jockey Florent Geroux will be in the irons from post No. 9.
Among the other rivals entered to face Stitched is Calumet Farm's three-time winner Cellist. Trained by Rusty Arnold, Cellist nearly led gate-to-wire three weeks ago in the 1 ½-mile Sycamore (G3) at Keeneland but was caught in the last jump by Bold Act. Cellist will break from the rail under Martin Garcia.
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