Hello Keeneland....

Tweet Keeneland and I have this love-hate relationship. The Lexington race track had gotten the better of me over the past few years. Not until this past spring meet did I even come close to generating a positive ROI (-.08). So I'm getting closer. I'm thinking this is the meet I exact revenge on the ghosts of Keeneland.


Tomorrow's opening day features two stakes races, the first being the Grade 3 Phoenix Stakes, wherein Woodbine shipper Hollywood Hit (4-1 ML), who I was fortunate enough to see beat Fatal Bullet up north in May making the trip to see La Chica Rica try the poly for the first time. Oddly, I saw his next race while sitting at the bar on my initial trip to Finger Lakes telling the lad next to me there was no way he could lose. Yep, he lost...upset by Smokey Fire tiring during the final sixteenth (that race was 6 1/2 furlongs). Coming in second off the layoff, but sporting a new trainer. Another horse that intrigues me is SoCal shipper Canonize (also 4-1 ML) with Victor Espinoza aboard who comes in off a long layoff, but is showing a couple decent works leading up to this one. EZ Dreamer comes in off a race from Zia Park (that doesn't happen every day) and finished 3rd in this race last year. Of course, the heavy favorite should end up being Warrior's Reward (5-2 ML), the only Grade 1 winner in the field, running for the second time at the 6f distance.

The second graded stake on the card is the Grade 1 Darley Alcibiades, a 1 1/16 mile jaunt on the polytrack for 2yo fillies. Wickedly Perfect (5-2 ML)is the morning line favorite for trainer Doug O'Neill, last seen beaten by Tell A Kelly (who lost last weekend at Hollywood Park)...Raf Bejarano is in to ride her. The other two horses who should be factors in this race, finished 1-2 last month at Arlington in a mile race. Jordy Y (4-1 ML) closed late to finish second, and I favor him over the winner Wonderlandbynight in this one going the extra sixteenth. Wayne Catalano looks like he's loaded for bear for this meet based on the entries I've seen so far.

Hello Keeneland. I'm coming for you.