Trainer Dale Romans' promising duo of Iroquois Stakes (Grade 3) third-place finisher Red Knobs, along with impressive maiden winner Howling Time, top an ultra-competitive field of nine 2-year-olds that were entered in Sunday's ninth running of the $200,000 Street Sense at Churchill Downs.
Sunday's 17th annual “Stars of Tomorrow I” program, which features all 2-year-old races, kicks off the 21-day Fall Meet. First post is 1 p.m. (all times Eastern). The 1 1/16-mile Street Sense shares the Sunday spotlight with the $200,000 Rags to Riches, which will also be run at 1 1/16 miles for 2-year-old fillies. The Street Sense was carded as Race 10 at 5:36 p.m. while the Rags to Riches will go as Race 5 at 3:03 p.m.
Inaugurated in 2005, Churchill Downs' “Stars of Tomorrow” programs have helped launched the careers of numerous graded stakes winners, including more than 50 future Grade 1 winners led by Horse of the Year champions Gun Runner (2017) and Rachel Alexandra (2009), Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver (2010), Kentucky Oaks winners Rachel Alexandra (2009), Believe You Can (2012) and Monomoy Girl (2018), Preakness winners Shackleford (2011), War of Will (2019) and Swiss Skydiver (2020), Belmont winner Creator (2016) as well as 2012 Breeders' Cup Classic and 2013 Stephen Foster hero Fort Larned and 2013 champion 3-year-old Will Take Charge.
Albaugh Family Stables' Howling Time, a 2-year-old son of Not This Time, broke his maiden on Sept. 25 at Churchill Downs by 1 ½ lengths in a six-furlong maiden special weight contest. The $200,000 purchase from the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale stopped the teletimer in 1:10.15 to earn a stout 91 Brisnet Speed Rating. Howling Time will be ridden by Joe Talamo from post position No. 6.
Meanwhile, his stablemate, Jim Bakke and Gerald Isbister's Red Knobs, was only defeated by one-length in the $300,000 Iroquois to Major General and Tough to Tame. The chestnut son of Union Rags broke his maiden this summer at Ellis Park by an impressive 6 ¼ lengths. He'll be ridden by James Graham from post 9.
Among the other top contenders in the Street Sense field are Silverton Hill's Kentucky Downs Juvenile Sprint winner Red Danger; Paradise Farms Corp., Skychai Racing and David Staudacher's Kentucky Downs Juvenile Mile runner-up Kiss the Sky; Lucky Seven Stable's Ellis Park Juvenile runner-up Lucky Boss; and Daniel Alonso's 10 ½-length maiden breaker Skippylongstocking.
The complete field for the Street Sense from the rail out (with jockey and trainer): Guntown (Ricardo Santana Jr., Steve Asmussen); Luni Sima (Adam Beschizza, Jack Sisterson); Skippylongstocking (Tyler Gaffalione, Saffie Joseph Jr.); Red Danger (Julien Leparoux, Brian Lynch); Kiss the Sky (Corey Lanerie, Mike Maker); Howling Time (Talamo, Romans); Lucky Boss (Brian Hernandez Jr., Kenny McPeek); Sport Pepper (Florent Geroux, Kerry Zavash); and Red Knobs (Graham, Romans).
The Street Sense and Rags to Riches both serve as the local prep races to the $400,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) and $400,000 Golden Rod (G2), respectively, as part of the “Stars of Tomorrow II” program on Saturday, Nov. 27.
After Sunday's opener, live racing will be conducted on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule with dark days on Mondays and Tuesdays. Most race days feature 10 live races. There will be 11 on Sunday's opener plus a trio of Saturdays: Nov. 6, 13 and 20. Twelve-race cards are scheduled over the final four days, Nov. 25-28.
Meanwhile, Susan Moulton's nine-length maiden winner Sandstone, along with Sekie and Tsunebumi Yoshihara's 7 ¼-length debut hero Yuugiri, headline a compact field of five 2-year-old fillies that were entered in Sunday's ninth running of the $200,000 Rags to Riches at Churchill Downs.
The Rags to Riches, run at 1 1/16 miles, will go as Race 5 of 11 with a post time of 3:03 p.m.
Sandstone, a daughter of Street Sense, broke her maiden on Oct. 3 at Churchill Downs over a “sloppy” surface. The Kenny McPeek-trained filly covered the one-mile distance in 1:37.43 and earned a 90 Brisnet Speed Rating.
Two weeks prior to Sandstone's open-length maiden score, the Rodolphe Brisset-trained Yuugiri cruised to a decisive victory. The homebred-daughter of Shackleford completed the six-furlong maiden special weight contest in 1:09.55 and earned a 95 Brisnet Speed Rating.
Brian Hernandez Jr. will have the return mount on Sandstone from post No. 3 while September Meet leading rider Tyler Gaffalione will pilot Yuugiri from post 4.
The Rags to Riches field also includes Harold Lerner, AWC Stables, Scott Akman, Nehoc Stables, Paul Braverman and Magdalena Racing's Pocahontas Stakes (G2I) runner-up Mama Rina; Joe Sharp's Ellis Park Debutante third-place finisher Manasota Sunset; and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Jessamine Stakes (G2) fourth-place finisher Dressed.
Here's the field for the Rags to Riches in order of post position (with jockey and trainer): Manasota Sunset (Ricardo Santana Jr., Sharp); Mama Rina (Julien Leparoux, Kenny McPeek); Sandstone (Hernandez, McPeek); Yuugiri (Gaffalione, Brisset); Dressed (Florent Geroux, Catalano).
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