Beach Haven Thoroughbreds, Medallion Racing, Parkland Thoroughbreds, and Barry Fowler's Grade 1 winner Maracuja will be pointed to the nine-furlong $250,000 Lady Jacqueline Stakes on June 26 at JACK Thistledown after an off-the-board finish last time out in the Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) April 23 at Oaklawn Park.
Maracuja breezed a half-mile in :48.98 Sunday over the Belmont main track in company with unraced 2-year-old War Prince, posting an easier work than her half-mile drill in :48.72 last week.
“She breezed well,” said trainer Rob Atras. “It was kind of just a maintenance breeze this weekend. She put in a pretty serious work last week, so we were just going easy today. We're on target for the Lady Jacqueline. We missed a few spots we were targeting and this race came up – the timing is good. We thought we'd take a shot and try to get her back in form.”
Maracuja provided a stunning upset in last year's Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) at Saratoga Race Course, defeating eventual champion 3-year-old filly Malathaat by a head at odds of 14-1 to give Atras his first career Grade 1 triumph.
The daughter of Honor Code finished her sophomore campaign with a pair of off-the-board finishes in Grade 1 company, finishing seventh the Alabama at the Spa and an even fourth in the Cotillion at Parx. She returned to winning ways in her 4-year-old debut with a two-length optional claiming score on April 1 at Oaklawn Park and followed with a distant fourth-place finish behind champion older dirt female Letruska in the Apple Blossom.
“She was real flat that day and it was a pretty tough race. Those fillies all showed up,” Atras said. “She ran kind of unusually flat that day, so we gave her a little time after that to get straightened out and then brought her back to Belmont. She seems like with every work she's gotten better and stronger. She's coming around and is back to her old self again.”
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