New Post Time, Super Hi-5 Carryover for Thursday Return of Live Racing
LAUREL, Md. – Morris Kernan Jr., Yo Berbs and Jagger Inc.’s Grade 3-placed gelding Galerio may get the chance to register his first career stakes victory next month over Thanksgiving weekend at Laurel Park.
Trainer and co-owner Jamie Ness said the $75,000 Howard Bender for Maryland-bred/sired 3-year-olds and up sprinting seven furlongs Nov. 26 is in play for the 5-year-old son of Jump Start, bred in Maryland by Daniel Marconi.
“I’d like to have something in between there if I could, but I definitely have that on the radar,” Ness said. “He’s a nice horse.”
Galerio, first or second in 22 of 28 lifetime starts including nine wins, was claimed for $40,000 out of a runner-up finish Aug. 16 going a mile on the main track at Colonial Downs. In his first start for Ness, he ran second in the M.P. Ballezzi Appreciation Mile Oct. 12 at Parx.
Among the horses he beat that day were Grade 3 winners Informative, Phat Man and Senior Investment and multiple stakes winner Someday Jones. Galerio was pre-entered in the $150,000 Maryland Million Classic Oct. 23 at Laurel.
“He’s not Maryland-sired, so he’d have [had] to get lucky to get in,” Ness said. “He ran up at Parx and ran second in a nice stake and beat some really good horses. Even if he did draw in [the Classic], I think it [was] too quick. I think he would bounce a little bit and not throw his best effort, so we weren’t really looking at it.”
Galerio has earned more than $417,000 in purses and placed in five stakes, all this year, including the Salvator Mile (G3) June 12 at Monmouth Park and the Harrison E. Johnson Memorial, John B. Campbell and Jennings in successive starts at Laurel to kick off 2021 for previous trainer Dale Bennett.
“We knew what we were getting. He’s a classy old horse,” Ness said. “We got him for [$40,000] and he was a little beat up, so we took our time with him. He really beat some good horses the other day. He ran second but the horses behind him are really good horses. I was really happy with his last race. Hopefully we’ll get him back and have him [at Laurel] all winter in those races.”
New Post Time, Super Hi-5 Carryover for Thursday Return of Live Racing
Laurel Park will have a new post time of 12:25 p.m. starting with Thursday’s return of live racing and continuing through the remainder of its calendar-year ending fall meet.
Nine races are on tap Thursday including five scheduled for Laurel’s world-class turf course which drew a total of 76 entries, an average of 15.2 per race. Racing will be conducted over the Bowl Game and Exceller course layouts.
Thursday’s feature comes in Race 7, a second-level optional claiming allowance for fillies and mares 3 and up sprinting 5 ½ furlongs on the Exceller that drew a field including July 24 Sensible Lady Turf Dash winner Can the Queen, July 4 Jameela winner Ellanation and Grade 3-placed Drop a Hint.
A pair of allowance races for 3-year-olds and up going 1 1/16 miles help spice up Thursday’s card. Race 3, on the Exceller turf, features Mystical Man, beaten a head as the favorite over yielding ground Sept. 25 at Laurel in his first start for Hall of Fame trainer Jack Fisher off a $75,000 claim at Saratoga. Race 8, on the main track, will see Godolphin’s Lidstrom, a $2.5 million yearling in September 2019, go after his second straight win following a maiden special weight triumph Oct. 2 at Laurel.
There will be a carryover of $3,117.78 in the $1 Super Hi-5 for Thursday’s opener.
Friday’s nine-race card features a stakes-quality, third-level optional claiming allowance for fillies and mares 3 and up sprinting seven furlongs in Race 3. The field includes Moquist, undefeated through three career starts; multiple stakes winners Dontletsweetfoolya and Needs Supervision, respectively unraced in 138 and 237 days; and March 13 Conniver runner-up Lookin Dynamic.
Irish Mias, the 2019 Laurel Futurity winner for trainer Graham Motion, is entered to make his first start in 393 days in Friday’s Race 8, an open, entry-level allowance dash for 3-year-olds and up going 5 ½ furlongs on the Exceller turf course.
David Joseph/Maryland Jockey Club
Photo: Galerio (MJC)
