CEDARTOWN MAKES GRADED STAKES DEBUT IN GRADE III MINESHAFT HANDICAP

By Ryan Martin —-

1/13/2018. – Joe Bravo rides Cedartown to victory in the Louisiana Stakes at Fair Grounds. Hodges Photography / Amanda Hodges Weir

CEDARTOWN MAKES GRADED STAKES DEBUT IN GRADE III MINESHAFT HANDICAP;
MOM’S ON STRIKE, HALLIE BELLE GO FOR FOUR STRAIGHT IN ALBERT STALL MEMORIAL STAKES

NEW ORLEANS (February 14, 2018) – Godolphin LLC’s Cedartown has shown a lot of talent in his past few starts but will take things to the next level when he tries graded stakes company for the first time in Saturday’s Grade III $150,000 Mineshaft Handicap. The mile-and-a-sixteenth-event is one of six stakes events at the Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots on Louisiana Derby Preview Day Presented by Lamarque Ford, which is Saturday Feb. 17.

Trained by Mike Stidham, the 4-year-old son of Candy Ride (Arg.) has never finished worse than second in seven career starts. He was a third out maiden winner at Monmouth Park in August of last year which he won by 5¼ lengths. Two starts later, he defeated winners at Keeneland on Oct. 20 when being elevated to first place via disqualification. He found the winner’s circle in his next two starts when shipping to New Mexico to win the Zia Park Derby on Nov. 22 by 1¾ lengths and then won the Louisiana Stakes over the local main track by two lengths in his most recent start.

Cedartown was a $620,000 purchase from the Fasig-Tipton Sale in March 2016 and is a three-quarters brother to three-time graded stakes winner Danzing Candy.

“He’s certainly climbed up the ladder nicely and we hope that he can take the next step to graded stakes level,” Stidham said. “We hope that leads him into the (Gr. II $400,000) New Orleans Handicap (on Mar. 24). That was our goal from early last summer to try and hope that he would be good enough for that race. When he started running well and his numbers were climbing, I told (President of Godolphin USA) Jimmy Bell that I would love to run in the New Orleans Handicap. Obviously there’s a hometown connection so I would love to win that race.”

Cedartown breaks from the rail under Joe Bravo as the 8-5 morning line favorite.

A couple of Cedartown’s rivals from the Louisiana Stakes will be taking another crack at the horse. One of which is The Player who is the second choice at 5-2 morning line odds and breaks from post five under Hall of Fame rider Calvin Borel. Owned by Carl Hurst in partnership with trainer William “Buff” Bradley, the 5-year-old son of Street Hero was fourth in the Louisiana Stakes as the favorite where he was beaten 2¾ lengths. Since his last effort, he has fired up the work tab with three bullet works- a five furlong drill in :59.60 (Jan. 26) and two half-mile breezes in :47.00 (Feb. 3) and :47.40 (Feb. 10). Bradley is making an equipment change with The Player and will add blinkers for the Mineshaft Handicap.

“We thought after he had gotten past in the last race, it looked like he was going to win and then he came on again late and galloped out strong,” Bradley said. “I just think he’s not as focused as much as he should be so we’re going to try a different tactic with him this time. He’s doing super, he couldn’t be doing any better.”

His lone graded stakes win took place in the Gr. III Fayette Stakes at Keeneland on Oct. 28.

DARRS Inc.’s Scuba (post three, 6-1, Julien Leparoux) was second to Cedartown in the Louisiana Stakes last time out. The runner-up effort was his first start since a victory in the Gr. III Hawthorne Gold Cup on Nov. 25.

The 7-year-old son of Tapit developed a reputation of being a dirt marathon specialist at the end of his 5-year-old year when he won three consecutive stakes events going long distances on the main track. The first of which was a five-length romp in the 1½-mile Gr. III Greenwood Cup at Parx Racing, followed by a win in the Temperance Hill Invitational Stakes at Belmont Park, run at a distance of 1 5/8 miles. Finally, he shipped to Santa Anita to win the 1¾-mile Gr. II Marathon Stakes.

Rounding out the field are No Distortion (post two, 15-1, Robby Albarado), Rich Daddy (post three, 8-1, Javier Castellano), Thirstforlife (post six, 8-1, Corey Lanerie), First Premio (post seven, 8-1, Adam Beschizza) and Team Colors (post eight, 12-1, John Velazquez).

A field of 11 fillies and mares will compete in the $75,000 Albert Stall Memorial Stakes, a mile-and-a-sixteenth event on the Stall-Wilson Turf Course.

Brad Grady and Carl R. Moore Management’s Mom’s On Strike (post six, Adam Beschizza, 7-2) will go for her fourth straight victory in the Albert Stall Memorial and is a perfect 2-for-2 on the Fair Grounds lawn. The first of the three races that the daughter of First Dude won was an allowance race over the grass at Churchill Downs, which she won by 5¼ lengths. She shipped down to the New Orleans oval for the Winter Meet along with the rest of the trainer Joe Sharp contingent and began receiving the riding services of Adam Beschizza, who guided Mom’s On Strike to an allowance win on Dec. 23 and a victory in the Marie Krantz Memorial Stakes on Jan. 13.

Also going for a fourth straight victory in the event is Godolphin LLC’s Hallie Belle (post ten, Robby Albarado, 12-1) who won the Pago Hop Stakes on Dec. 30 last time out. The 4-year-old daughter of Medaglia d’Oro is trained by Mike Stidham, who scored victories in the race with Tizaqueena (2010) and Upperline (2011) when the race was knows as the Daisy Devine Stakes. Hallie Belle broke her maiden at third asking on Oct. 21 over the Keeneland lawn by six lengths before defeating winners next out over the Fair Grounds turf by a half-length.

Trainer Mark Casse will be represented by Giada Vegas (post three, Corey Lanerie, 6-1) and Malibu Bonnie (post eight, Brian Hernandez, Jr., 8-1). Owned by Dixiana Farms LLC, Giada Vegas was had her four-race win streak come to an end in the Marie Krantz Memorial Stakes last time out, when defeated by Mom’s On Strike. In the fall of last year, she won a trio of allowance races over the Polytrack at Woodbine before taking the Fair Grounds’ Blushing K.D. Stakes on Dec. 16. Malibu Bonnie has not raced since October of last year, where she was a winner of an allowance optional claiming event over the Woodbine lawn on Oct. 20. In her prior start she defeated stable mate Giada Vegas by a half-length at the Toronto oval. Casse’s assistant David Carroll oversees his string of horses at the Fair Grounds and won this race in 1998 with Cuando when he was a trainer.

Rounding out the field are Five Hearts (post one, Joe Bravo, 8-1), Vagabond Princess (post two, Jack Gilligan, 20-1), I’m Betty G (post four, Javier Castellano, 3-1), Inveniam Viam (post five, Shaun Bridgmohan, 8-1), Skyluck (post seven, Edgar Paucar, 30-1), Shes A True Beauty (post nine, Florent Geroux, 12-1) and Susie Bee (post 11, Julien Leparoux, 8-1).

About Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, the nation’s third-oldest racetrack, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, LA, Fair Grounds is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN); it also operates a slot-machine gaming facility and 11 off-track betting parlors throughout southeast Louisiana. The 146th Thoroughbred Racing Season – highlighted by the 105th running of the Louisiana Derby – will run from November 18, 2017 through March 31, 2018. More information can be found online at www.FairGroundsRaceCourse.com.