Multiple stakes winners Hello Beautiful and Dontletsweetfoolya set the stage for their first head-to-head matchup in the $250,000 Runhappy Barbara Fritchie (G3) Feb. 13 with sharp half-mile works over Laurel Park's main track Saturday.
The 69th running of the Fritchie for fillies and mares 4 and older and the 45th renewal of the $250,000 General's Stake (G3) for 4-year-olds and up, formerly the General George, highlight a Winter Sprintfest program offering six stakes worth $900,000 in purses.
Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful was timed in 47.60 seconds, second-fastest of 68 horses at the distance. Jockey Sheldon Russell was aboard for his wife, trainer Brittany Russell.
Hello Beautiful owns five career stakes wins including three straight entering the Fritchie, the most recent coming in the six-furlong What a Summer Jan. 16 in her 4-year-old debut.
“She worked fantastic. We were absolutely pleased with her. Sheldon loved her, and she seems like she's ready to go,” Brittany Russell said. “You walk them over hoping they're doing as well as she is right now and you have to leave it up to them from there. We're giving her every opportunity to run a big one.”
Five Hellions Farm's Dontletsweetfoolya takes a five-race win streak into the Fritchie, which open her 4-year-old campaign. The Stay Thirsty filly ended 2020 with victories in the Nov. 28 Primonetta and Dec. 26 Willa On the Move, both going six furlongs at Laurel.
With regular rider Jevian Toledo up, Dontletsweetfoolya worked four furlongs in 48 seconds, ranking fifth. She went in company with newly turned 3-year-old filly Fraudulent Charge (48.20), who is being pointed to the $100,000 Wide Country on the Fritchie undercard.
“The work went very well. They got them in 48 and galloped out in a minute, so it was perfect, exactly what we wanted,” trainer Lacey Gaudet said. “I don't tell [Toledo] anything. Even the work this morning, they were all laughing at me because I was like, 'Don't go too fast, don't go too slow,' but when I walked up with him I said, 'You know how to work her,' and that's what he did. They did their thing.”
Also working Saturday for the Fritchie were Willa On the Move runner-up Hibiscus Punch, five furlongs in 1:01.40 at Laurel; and 2020 Go for Wand (G3) winner Sharp Starr, a half-mile in a bullet 47 seconds over Belmont Park's training track, the fastest of 140 horses.
Hillside Equestrian Meadows' Laki, whose six career stakes include the 2020 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash (G3) last fall at Pimlico Race Course, blazed four furlongs in a bullet 47.60 seconds Saturday at Laurel with jockey Horacio Karamanos in preparation for the General. Trained by Damon Dilodovico, Laki has won at least one stake every year since 2017.
“He worked well. We usually don't ask him for much in the morning. He was just ready to roll,” Dilodovico said. “He's training well. We got a really nice breeze out of him today and he cooled out well, so we'll see how he is the next couple days.”
Other horses nominated to the General breezing at Laurel Saturday were multiple stakes winner Lebda, four furlongs in 47.60 seconds, ranking second, and 2019 Remsen (G3) winner Shotski, a half-mile in 48 seconds.
Also prominent on Saturday's Laurel work tab were multiple stakes winners Kenny Had a Notion (six furlongs, 1:14.40) for the $100,000 Miracle Wood for 3-year-olds; Street Lute (five furlongs, 59.60 seconds) for the $100,000 Wide Country for 3-year-old fillies, the latter the fastest of 32 horses; and Cordmaker (five furlongs, 1:01) for the $100,000 John B. Campbell at about 1 1/16 miles for 4-year-olds and up.
Notes: Alexander Crispin, the Eclipse Award-winning apprentice of 2020, registered a hat trick Saturday aboard Bring Me Answers ($4) in Race 2, Keepyourstakeson ($3.20) in Race 6 and Bananas On Fire ($6.60) in Race 9. Jockey Xavier Perez also doubled with Indian Lake ($5.40) in Race 1 and Seany P ($13.20) via disqualification in Race 8 … No one selected all six winners in the 20-cent Rainbow 6, growing the carryover jackpot to $1,559.76 for Sunday. Tickets with five of six winners were each worth $158.06.
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