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Fast Fashionably Set For Return In California Cup Sprint

Fashionably Fast, prepping for this Saturday's $150,000 Donald Valpredo California Cup Sprint at six furlongs at Santa Anita, worked four furlongs this morning in 48.40 under regular rider Tiago Pereira at the Arcadia, Calif., track.

“He went fine,” trainer Dean Pederson said. “Hopefully, we're where we need to be. I had him in 47 and three or four, something like that. Times are irrelevant. It's not like we're deciding to run in a maiden 50 or a maiden 20. It will be a competitive race. You just have to hope for the best.

“He had run hard and just needed a little breather,” Pederson added, explaining the gelding's absence of five months since last Aug. 1 when he finished sixth of eight behind victorious Collusion Illusion in the Grade I Bing Crosby at Del Mar. “I have an owner who's very cooperative.”

Actually, Fashionably Fast has three owners: breeder John Harris, Per Antonsen and John Nicoletti, for whom Pederson has trained the last 20 or so years.

A 6-year-old chestnut son of Lucky Pulpit, Fashionably Fast has a 7-4-2 record from 18 starts with earnings of $490,245.

“Like I say, the horse has run hard for us, he ran his eyeballs out against McKinzie (second in the Grade 2 Triple Bend last June 7 to the four-time Grade I winner that was recently retired to stud at Gainesway Farm near Lexington, Ky.).”

Prior to the Triple Bend, Fashionably Fast had reeled off six straight victories, four of them in California-bred stakes.

“The Bing Crosby didn't unfold the way we thought it would and he was a tired horse,” Pederson said. “At that point we decided to give him a few months breather.

“Things have gone well since he came back and if we get beat, we'll have to get outrun. He's had several breezes; he hasn't missed a work.

“One thing about this horse: he doesn't owe anybody a dime.”

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Collusion Illusion Takes on Elders in Bing Crosby

The lightly raced sophomore Collusion Illusion (Twirling Candy) will try to give his elders a run for their money Saturday in Del Mar’s GI Bing Crosby S., a “Win and You’re In” event for the GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint S. Opening his account with a pair of wins, including the GII Best Pal S. last summer, he was pulled up when trying two turns in the GI American Pharoah S. in September. Returning May 17, he scored a decisive victory in a six-panel optional claimer at Santa Anita and repeated that performance in the GIII Lazaro Barrera S. there June 20.

Fashionably Fast (Lucky Pulpit) won six straight races, including four Cal-bred stakes over the winter. The chestnut enters this off a second-place finish behind MGISW McKinzie (Street Sense) in the GII Triple Bend S. last time June 7. McKinzie was the morning-line favorite in this event at entries, but it was announced he would be scratched Wednesday.

Dual Grade III winner Law Abidin Citizen (Twirling Candy) takes a crack at the highest level here. Victorious in the GIII Longacres Mile H. last August, he was fourth I the GII San Carlos S. Mar. 7 at Santa Anita and missed by a hand behind stakes winner Ax Man (Misremembered) in an Arcadia optional claimer May 16 and won a 6 1/2-panel event there last time June 14.

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Collusion Illusion, Fashionably Fast Top ‘Win And You’re In’ Bing Crosby

The 3-year-old Collusion Illusion and the 5-year-old Fashionably Fast lead a nine-horse field of talented sprinters in Saturday's 6-furlong, $250,000 Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) on NBCSN, with live coverage from Del Mar beginning at 7 p.m. ET. The Bing Crosby winner will receive an automatic berth into the $2 million Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series.

The three-hour program, in association with TVG, marks the fifth telecast this year in the “Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In – presented by America's Best Racing” on NBC and NBCSN from some of North America's most iconic racetracks. The series leads to the 37th Breeders' Cup World Championships at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., scheduled for Nov. 6-7 on NBC and NBCSN. The complete series TV schedule can be accessed here.

Commentary and discussion for the telecast will be anchored by TVG's Todd Schrupp and Simon Bray. Post time for the Bing Crosby is 9:30 p.m. ET.

Collusion Illusion, trained by Mark Glatt and ridden by Flavien Prat, has won four of five starts, but will be challenging older horses for the first time. He comes into the Bing Crosby off an excellent performance in the 6 ½-furlong Lazaro Barrera Stakes (G3) at Santa Anita Park on June 20, winning by 3 ¼ lengths. Owned by Dan Agnew, Rodney Orr, Jerry Schneider and John Xitco, Collusion Illusion won both his starts at Del Mar last year, breaking his maiden at 5 furlongs in July, and following up that performance with a win in the Best Pal Stakes (G2).

Collusion Illusion made his next start in the American Pharoah Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita Park on Sept. 27, and was pulled up in the stretch. After a nearly eight-month layoff, he returned in May for his 3-year-old debut with a sharp 3-length win in a 6-furlong allowance optional claiming race at Santa Anita.

California-bred Fashionably Fast, trained by Dean Pederson and ridden by Tiago Pereira, won six consecutive races dating back to July of last year, including three at Del Mar, before stepping into graded stakes company in the 7-furlong Triple Bend (G2) at Santa Anita on June 7. He put up a tough battle against top older horse McKinzie into the stretch, but finished second by 1 ½ lengths.

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert entered McKinzie in the Bing Crosby, but said Wednesday that he would be scratched.

Prior to the Triple Bend, Fashionably Fast opened this year winning the California Cup Sprint Stakes and the Tiznow Stakes at Santa Anita.

A challenge from Kentucky comes from Calumet Farm's 4-year-old Lexitonian, who is being shipped to California following a scratch at the gate in last Saturday's Alfred G. Vanderbilt Stakes (G1) at Saratoga. A chestnut son of 2004 Breeders' Cup Sprint winner Speightstown, Lexitonian, trained by Jack Sisterson and ridden by Drayden Van Dyke, finished third by less than a length in last October's Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix Stakes (G2) at Keeneland. After a 10th-place finish in the Count Fleet Sprint Handicap (G3) at Oaklawn in April, Lexitonian rebounded with a solid win in a 7-furlong allowance optional claiming race at Churchill Downs on May 29.

Harris Farm's 6-year-old gelding Desert Law fought Cistron down the stretch in last year's Bing Crosby Stakes, finishing second by a half-length. A California-bred son of Desert Code, trained by Carla Gaines, Desert Law made his first start of this year in the 6-furlong Thor's Echo Stakes on June 13 at Santa Anita, finishing third as the even-money favorite. Desert Law will be ridden by Victor Espinoza.

W.C. Racing's 4-year-old gelding Wildman Jack, winner of four of nine starts, will make his dirt track debut on Saturday. Trained by Doug O'Neill, Wildman Jack, a bay son of two-time Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) winner Goldencents, made his biggest career score on March 7 when he captured the Nad Al Sheba Turf Sprint (G3) in stakes-record time at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai. He was scheduled to make his next start in the Al Quoz Sprint (G1) at Meydan but the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. He returned to the U.S. and won the Daytona Stakes (G3) on the turf at Santa Anita on May 23 by a nose over Sparky Ville. However, in his most recent start, he trailed the field in the Shakertown Stakes (G2) at Keeneland on July 11.

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