This weekend marks the opening of winter meets at both Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark. and at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla. At Oaklawn, Saturday's card features the $150,000 Mistletoe Stakes for 3-year-old fillies, while Gulfstream's Saturday card is highlighted by the nine stakes races that make up the annual Claiming Crown for blue-collar racehorses.
It is also closing weekend at Woodbine Racetrack in Ontario, and Sunday's card features the G3 Valedictory Stakes.
Graded stakes action includes the G1 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct, featuring a pair of Todd Pletcher-trained sophomores against the likes of Independence Hall, Ginobili, and Code of Honor; as well as the G1 Starlet at Los Alamitos for 2-year-old fillies.
Here's a quick look at some of those races:
Saturday
2:43 p.m. – G3 Go For Wand Handicap at Aqueduct
Barry Schwartz's New York-homebred Sharp Starr will look to defend her title in this a one-turn mile handicap for fillies and mares. Trained by Horacio DePaz, Sharp Starr boasts a perfect in-the-money record of 6-2-2-2 at the Big A, including an impressive 15 3/4-length romp last November that registered a career-best 101 Beyer ahead of her Go for Wand coup.
Sharp Starr captured the $250,000 Empire Distaff last month at Belmont, off a two-month layoff, where she notched a 16-1 upset coming from last-of-10 under jockey Jose Ortiz, who will retain the mount from post 7 carrying 119 pounds. She earned a 92 Beyer for the win, her first of the 2021 season in five starts.
3:14 p.m. – G2 Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct
Jeff Drown's impressive maiden winner Zandon will attempt to rise to the occasion in the 106th running of the $250,000 Remsen for juveniles going nine furlongs. Trained by Chad Brown, who won the 2014 Remsen with Leave the Light On, Zandon was a 1 ½-length winner of his six-furlong debut on Oct. 9 at Belmont Park.
Despite hitting the gate at the break, the son of second crop sire Upstart recovered and sat two lengths off the pace while saving ground in fourth down the backstretch. Joel Rosario angled Zandon a couple of paths wide down the lane and he garnered command in the final furlong to register an 80 Beyer Speed Figure on debut.
The Remsen offers 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top-four finishers.
3:43 p.m. – G2 Demoiselle Stakes at Aqueduct
Manzanita Stables' well-bred Tap the Faith will make her stakes debut in this nine-furlong test for juvenile fillies. Trained by Christophe Clement, the Tapit bay rallied from last-to-first to win her debut by a head travelling a one-turn mile on Nov. 7 at Belmont Park.
A $1.25 million Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase, Tap the Faith is out of the Super Saver mare Embellish the Lace, who captured the 2015 Grade 1 Alabama at the Spa.
The Demoiselle offers 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Oaks qualifying points to the top-four finishers.
4:13 p.m. – G1 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct
An accomplished field of eight horses will seek the calendar year's final opportunity for Grade 1 glory on the NYRA circuit in the 32nd running of the $750,000 Cigar Mile.
Owned by WinStar Farm and CHC Inc. and bred in New York by Fred W. Hertrich III and John D. Fielding, Americanrevolution makes his return to graded company after finishing third two starts back in the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby on Sept. 25 at Parx, which was won by Hot Rod Charlie over Midnight Bourbon.
Spendthrift Farm homebred Following Sea was a troubled third in the last out Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint and seeks his second graded stakes triumph in Saturday's engagement. The son of second crop sire Runhappy was victorious in wire-to-wire fashion against multiple graded stakes winner Firenze Fire in the six-furlong Grade 2 Vosburgh on Oct. 9 at Belmont.
The one-turn mile will be a swan song for multiple graded stakes-winner Independence Hall who returns to Aqueduct for the first time since capturing the 2020 Jerome. Trained by Pletcher's former assistant Michael McCarthy, Independence Hall arrives off a 7 ¼-length runaway victory at 1 1/8 miles in the Grade 2 Fayette on October 30 over a sloppy and sealed Keeneland main track, where he registered a career-best 105 Beyer.
Trainer Richard Baltas will ship Ginobili cross-country, attempting to give the son of Munnings a second graded stakes triumph. Owned by Baltas in partnership with Nick Casato's Slum Dunk Racing, Jerry McClanahan and Michael Nentwig, Ginobili ended a nine race losing streak in July at Del Mar capturing a one mile allowance optional claimer by 9 ¾ lengths. He followed with a score in the Grade 2 Pat O' Brien one month later at Del Mar, which offered a “Win and You're In” berth to the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, where Ginobili finished second to Life Is Good on Nov. 6 at Del Mar.
As the lone millionaire in the race, William S. Farish's Code of Honor boasts a field-best $2,951,320 in lifetime earnings and seeks a third Grade 1 victory for Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey. This year, he captured the Grade 3 Phillip H. Iselin in August at Monmouth Park. He enters from a last out second to Independence Hall in the Fayette.
Bill Mott will attempt a fourth victory in a race named after one of the greatest horses he has ever trained when the Hall of Famer saddles 3-year-old Olympiad. Owned by Grandview Equine, Cheyenne Stable and LNJ Foxwoods, Olympiad defeated older winners last out in a first-level allowance at Keeneland going seven furlongs. He broke his maiden in October 2020 against subsequent stakes winners Caddo River and Greatest Honour travelling the same distance at Belmont Park.
6:58 p.m. – G1 Starlet Stakes at Los Alamitos
Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will have three opportunities to win the Grade 1, $300,000 Starlet – the final Grade 1 of 2021 for 2-year-old fillies – for a fifth consecutive year Saturday at Los Alamitos.
Baffert, whose streak of Starlet victories includes Dream Tree (2017), Chasing Yesterday (2018), Bast (2019) and Varda last year, entered Grace Adler, Eda, and Benedict Canyon in 2021.
Owned by Willow Grace Farm and Michael Lund Petersen, Grace Adler will be seeking the second Grade I success of her young career. The daughter of Curlin and the Newfoundland mare Our Khrysty dominated seven opponents by 11 ¼ lengths in the Del Mar Debutante Sept. 5.
Eda, a Munnings filly out of the Lemon Drop Kid mare Show Me, is the most accomplished of the Baffert trio in terms of wins. She's 3-for-5 with a bankroll of $190,000. Owned by Baoma Corporation, Eda enters off consecutive victories, taking the Anoakia Oct. 24 and the Desi Arnaz Nov. 13. The Starlet will mark her first start beyond seven furlongs.
Sunday
5:53 p.m. – G3 Valedictory Stakes at Woodbine
The 2019 Belmont Stakes winner Sir Winston resumes his rivalry with Special Forces in this 1 1/2-mile contest over the Tapeta.
Most recently, Sir Winston, the 5-year-old son of Awesome Again trained by Mark Casse, ran second in the G2 Autumn Stakes, while Special Forces ran third. That order was reversed two starts back in the G3 Durham, with Special Forces besting Sir Winston by a half-length.
A full field of 14 with one also-eligible has signed on for this marathon event.
7:30 p.m. – G3 Bayakoa Stakes at Los Alamitos
Two-time Grade 2 winner As Time Goes By will have six rivals in her return to Los Alamitos Sunday. Trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert for Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, As Time Goes By will get some class relief after finishing eighth of 11 in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Distaff Nov. 6 at Del Mar.
Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella, who won the 2017 Bayakoa with Majestic Heat, will be represented Sunday by Moonlight d'Oro. Owned by MyRachorse and Spendthrift Farm LLC, the 3-year-old Medaglia d'Oro filly was runner-up as the odds-on choice in a restricted stakes at Del Mar Nov. 3 after nine months on the sidelines.
Benjamin and Sally Warren's homebred Warren's Showtime will make her Los Alamitos debut for trainer Craig Lewis. The California bred daughter of Clubhouse Ride and the Affirmative mare Warren's Veneda has been effective on turf and dirt, winning eight of 23. The 4-year-old has earned $794,431.
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