While graded-stakes winners Special Reserve, Wondrwherecraigis and Pickin' Time figure to garner plenty of attention in Saturday's $150,000 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash at Maryland's Laurel Park, Pocket 3's Racing's Threes Over Deuces will be flying under the radar – again.
The 7-year-old Flat Out gelding is entered to make his 46th career start in the six-furlong De Francis for 3-year-olds and up, which highlights an 11-race program featuring four stakes worth $450,000 in purses on the second of three Sizzling Saturdays in July at Laurel Park.
Threes Over Deuces owns seven wins, 14 seconds and nine thirds with $572,847 in purse earnings and has placed twice in graded-stakes since debuting in the 2017 First State Dash at Delaware Park, graduating next time out in an October 2017 waiver maiden claimer at Laurel.
Trained throughout his career by Laurel-based Gary Capuano, Threes Over Deuces is a multiple stakes winner, having taken the 2020 New Castle at Delaware and 2021 Dave's Friend at Laurel. He has placed in nine other stakes on both turf and dirt, finishing second to Grade 1 winner Firenze Fire in Laurel's 2020 General George (G3).
“He runs with the best of the best around here,” Capuano said, “and he's run right with him. He always shows up. He might not quite get there or they might be a little bit too much for him some days, but he gives it his all. That's all we ask and the old boy just keeps plugging along, and he's happy right now. It's just about keeping him happy and good.”
In his most recent effort, Threes Over Deuces was unable to close at speed-favoring Penn National and ran fourth in the June 17 Chocolate Town to Ny Traffic, a multiple stakes winner that has placed in five graded-stakes including a second by a nose in the 2020 Haskell (G1) behind eventual 3-year-old male champion and Horse of the Year Authentic.
Threes Over Deuces was second to another multiple stakes winner, Maryland-bred Jaxon Traveler, in the six-furlong Maryland Sprint (G3) May 21 on the undercard of the 147th Preakness Stakes (G1) at historic Pimlico Race Course.
“He's a tough kind of horse. He has a lot of seconds and thirds, but he gives you 110 percent every time he runs,” Capuano said. “The race at Pimlico was a really good race; Jaxon Traveler was a little too much for him that day. He came to him turning for home but the other horse had too much left and that horse has got some class to him too, plus he's fast. It was another great effort.”
Capuano has not noticed a drop-off from Threes Over Deuces as he gets older. His multi-millionaire sire raced 29 times through his 7-year-old year, closing it with a victory in the 2013 Cigar Mile (G1).
“He's as enthusiastic as ever. He got a little heavy on us at one point, so we got his weight down a little bit where he looks really good now,” Capuano said. “He just keeps plugging along. He's got a bunch of seconds, but he keeps trying.
“He's pretty adaptable. If it doesn't look like there's a ton of speed in there, we can kind of send him out of there pretty good and try and get a decent position. He usually breaks well,” he added. “If the pace is hot, he can come from off the pace. He's pretty versatile. He'll do whatever, he just needs a little bit of luck sometimes – like they all do.”
Capuano opted to skip the De Francis with nominee Shackqueenking. Similarly owned by Pocket 3's, the gelded 4-year-old son of 2011 Preakness winner Shackleford has not raced since finishing fourth to Cordmaker in the Feb. 19 General George. Shackqueenking has run third in four stakes since capturing the 2020 Howard County in his juvenile finale.
“He's getting close. I threw him in there just to maybe kind of see if he was ready this weekend, but he's got another work or two before I think he's ready to go,” Capuano said. “He's getting fit and working pretty steady. We'll see what comes up for him. We'll try and find something a little easier to come back to.”
The post ‘Old Boy Just Keeps Plugging Along’: Threes Over Deuces May Trump Favorites In De Francis Dash appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
