bessarabian | Horse Racing Free Tips

This Saturday's Grade 2, $175,000 Bessarabian Stakes brings together a strong field of nine fillies and mares running seven furlongs on the all-weather Tapeta surface at Woodbine. All seven finished third or better in their most recent races, with five emerging victorious in those starts over the past two months.

Both Aug Lutes and Our Secret Agent earned their recent wins in stakes races, with Aug Lutes' win coming in the Glen Cove Stakes at the distance of the Bessarabian Stakes but on turf, while Our Secret Agent won the Hendrie Stakes on the Woodbine Main track at the slightly shorter distance of six and one-half furlongs.
Gidgetta ships into the barn of top trainer Josie Carroll after having won on turf in California last month in a very highly rated race which suggests she fits with these.
Lady Speightspeare, who is undefeated in three starts, won the Grade 1 Natalma Stakes on grass in September, 2020 then returned from nearly a year away from the races this September to win easily.
Emmeline may have just earned her first career win last month, in her ninth career start but finished second in both the Bison City Stakes and Woodbine Oaks prior to that so is another who appears to fit on all counts in this field.
Juxtapose enters the race off a third place finish in the Grade 3 Ontario Matron Stakes four weeks ago, and leads the field in career wins with six, from 13 starts.
La Libertee finished third in the Hendrie Stakes behind Our Secret Agent after a troubled start and can improve.
Spun Glass ships in from Maryland for trainer Michael Trombetta, who also saddles Aug Lutes, and won the only time she raced on an all-weather surface previously.
Last but certainly not least is Tuned, who just won the All Along Stakes on turf at Laurel for her third straight win.

Main win contenders:

Even with so many of the eight entrants proven in stakes or entering the race off top efforts, Aug Lutes and Gidgetta appear to have a significant edge over the rest based on their most recent efforts. Aug Lutes gets slight preference of the pair, not only because she has won four of five career races and finished second in the other, but because she's on a pattern for significant improvement off a career-best 102 ™ Equibase® Speed Figure earned last month posting the 19-1 upset in the Glen Cove Stakes at Belmont. That race, her first ever on turf, was run at the same seven furlong distance of the Bessarabian. Right before that Aug Lutes rallied from 10th to second in the Duchess Stakes at this seven furlong trip on the Tapeta main track at Woodbine. Jockey Antonio Gallardo, who is one of the top jockeys at Woodbine, rode Aug Lutes to that win at Presque Isle Downs in September, which followed a 10 month layoff, then rode her again in the Duchess. Likely to take another step forward as a lightly raced three year old, off the pattern of figures from 88 to 95 to 102, and proven to love the all-weather main track surface, Aug Lutes may be very tough to beat in this race.

That being said, Gidgetta may give Aug Lutes all she can handle if she takes to the surface as it appears she might based on her two recent workouts after shipping in from California. Never worse than third in five sprint races this year on turf, Gidgetta earned a career-best 108 ™ figure when finishing second in May, then two races later in a sprint earned a 105 figure before a 104 figure effort winning by a nose last month. Owned and bred by famous sports radio host Jim Rome (Jungle Racing), Gidgetta is showing every sign of running as well on the Tapeta all-weather surface as she did on turf. In her first local workout on October 30, Gidgetta worked :47.8 for a half-mile which was the 13th best of 90 workouts at the distance on the day. Then, in her most recent workout on November 8, the filly worked the same half-mile in a scintillating 47 flat which was the best workout of the day for the distance. With Patrick Husbands getting on for top trainer Josie Carroll and with it likely Gidgetta is going to run another “A” race like her last four sprints, the stretch run of this race between her and Aug Lutes promises to be very exciting.

Our Secret Agent has to be considered a contender to win as well. Her consistent career record of 3-6-3 in 12 career sprint races tells us she shows up with a competitive effort every time. As part of that record, Our Secret Agent finished third in the 2020 Bessarabian as well as second in the 2020 Duchess Stakes (with a career-best 100 figure), the same race Aug Lutes finished second in this year. Our Secret Agent also just won the Hendrie Stakes at the slightly shorter distance of six and one-half furlongs last month. The addition of blinkers for that race appears to have made a big difference, as did the jockey change to Kazushi Kimura, who had not ridden the filly since July of 2020, also to victory. With her last two sprint efforts yielding 98 and 99 figures not too far from the best efforts of Gidgetta and Aug Lutes, Our Secret Agent may have what it takes to win this race and even if she doesn't win she is highly probable to finish second or third as she's done so many times previously.
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The rest of the field, with their best ™ Equibase Speed Figures, is Emmeline (101), Juxtapose (100), La Libertee (91), Lady Speightspeare (98), Spun Glass (96) and Tuned (104).

Win Contenders:
Aug Lutes
Gidgetta
Our Secret Agent

Bessarabian Stakes – Grade 2
Race 8 at Woodbine
Saturday, N0vember 13 – Post Time 5:16 PM E.T.
Seven Furlongs
Fillies and Mares, Three Year Olds and Upward
Purse: $175,000

The post Equibase Analysis: Aug Lutes, Gidgetta Have The Edge In Bessarabian appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Juxtapose, a 4-year-old daughter of Verrazano-Aldara, goes after her first added-money win in Saturday's Grade 2 $175,000 Bessarabian Stakes, at Woodbine.

The seven-furlong main track feature for fillies and mares, three-years-old and upward, has drawn nine starters, including Juxtapose.

Trained by Steve Owens, the Kentucky-bred heads into her second straight stakes date after notching a third in the Grade 3 Ontario Matron on Oct. 10 at Woodbine.

That effort came after a seven-furlong grass win, the sixth victory of her career, on Aug. 22 at Woodbine.

Sent off at 8-1, Juxtapose rallied from fourth at the stretch call to claim a head score over firm going on the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

The dark bay brings a record of 6-0-3 from 13 starts into the Bessarabian for owners James Redekop and Stefan Ferrario.

“Juxtapose, she's a nice little filly who tries hard every race,” praised Owens. “She's a little difficult to train, but she gives 110 percent every time we take her out there in the afternoon.”

Bred by Alvin D. Haynes Estate, Juxtapose debuted on October 5, 2019, finishing sixth in a 5 ½-furlong sprint over the Toronto oval's main track.

Two weeks later, she broke her maiden, the start of a three-race win streak.

“She's always been a very consistent horse,” said Owens. “She's very aggressive in the morning, but she's all business when the gate opens.”

Last year, she went 2-0-2 from six starts. In 2021, she's 2-0-1 from four appearances.

Owens, closing in on 300 career wins, has a good idea of what to expect from Juxtapose in the Bessarabian.

“She's a little better, I feel, on the turf, but she'll run on broken glass. She does whatever you need her to do out there.”

If recent patterns are any indication of what's in store for Juxtapose on Saturday, Owens will no doubt be encouraged.

In her last seven starts, she's finished third, first, fifth, first, fifth, first and third, respectively.

“If that's the pattern, we really do [have something to look forward to]. She's at a good distance. She's cutting back from a mile-and-a-sixteenth and she had a really lovely work on the weekend, :48, out in a minute and one-fifth. She had a really nice work two weeks ago that set her up for that one, :59 and change, and galloped out in 1:12.1. So, she's coming into the race in the right condition.”

Trainer Roger Attfield and Kinghaven Farms teamed to win the first two editions of the Bessarabian – in 1985 with Summer Mood and one year later with Playlist.

Conditioner Josie Carroll has won three runnings of the Bessarabian, including in 2017 and 2018, both with Moonlit Promise. She also won with Smart Surprise in 2008 and sends out Gidgetta this year.

The race is named after Canada's champion older female of 1986, a multiple stakes winning daughter of Vice Regent trained by Michael Doyle and owned by Eaton Hall Farm. She finished her racing career with an 18-5-4 mark from 37 starts.

Also on Saturday, 10 fillies and mares, three-years-old and upward, will travel 1 ¼-miles on the Tapeta in the Grade 3 $150,000 Maple Leaf Stakes.

Starters include the Mark Casse-trained foursome of Art of Almost, Broadway Lady, Crystal Glacier and Skygaze.

Graham Motion will send out Sister Otoole, a four-year-old Florida-bred daughter of Amira's Prince (IRE), who sports a 2-3-3 record from 10 starts.

The race, inaugurated in 1892, was won by Heavenly Curlin last year.

Conn Smythe, principal owner of the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs from 1927 to 1961 and builder of Maple Leaf Gardens, leads all owners with seven Maple Leaf crowns.

The Bessarabian is carded as race eight on Saturday's 11-race program. The Maple Leaf goes as race seven. First post is 12:55 p.m. Fans can also watch and wager on all the action through HPIbet.com and the Dark Horse Bets app.

FIELD FOR THE BESSARABIAN

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Gidgetta – Patrick Husbands – Josie Carroll

2 – La Libertee – Rafael Hernandez – Mark Casse

3 – Spun Glass – Luis Contreras – Michael Trombetta

4 – Lady Speightspeare (S) – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Roger Attfield

5 – Aug Lutes – Antonio Gallardo – Michael Trombetta

6 – Juxtapose – Gary Boulanger – Steve Owens

7 – Our Secret Agent – Kazushi Kimura – Mark Casse

8 – Emmeline – Justin Stein – John Mattine

9 – Tuned (GB) – Daisuke Fukumoto – Graham Motion

FIELD FOR THE MAPLE LEAF

1 – Merveilleux – Justin Stein – Kevin Attard

2 – Art of Almost – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Mark Casse

3 – Skygaze – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse

4 – Sister Otoole – Kazushi Kimura – Graham Motion

5 – La Lune (GB) – David Moran – Edward Vaughan

6 – Peace Seeker – Antonio Gallardo – Nick Nosowenko

7 – Broadway Lady – Shaun Bridgmohan – Mark Casse

8 – Ann of Cleves – Keveh Nicholls – John LeBlanc Jr.

9 – Crystal Glacier – Gary Boulanger – Mark Casse

10 – Lake Lucerne – Rafael Hernandez – Brendan Walsh

The post Hard-Trying Juxtapose Steps Up For Bessarabian appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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