Barbadian Runner. (The Maryland Jockey Club)
Dan Illman/The Maryland Jockey Club
LAUREL, Md. – The top three finishers from last month’s Spectacular Bid Stakes square off once more in Saturday’s $100,000 Miracle Wood for 3-year-olds racing one mile at Laurel Park.
The Miracle Wood shares top billing on the nine-race program with the $100,000 Wide Country Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs. The first post time is 12:10 pm ET.
AJ Will Win Stables’ Barbadian Runner earned his first stakes victory in the Spectacular Bid after finishing third in his two previous starts, the Heft on Dec. 28 and the restricted Maryland Juvenile on Dec. 7.
Barbadian Runner tended to drift inward during his races, so trainer Henry Walters made key equipment changes before the Heft.
“The first time he lugged in [when third in a first-level allowance on turf on Oct. 25], we took it as something that just happened,” Walters said after the Spectacular Bid. “After he did it the second time [in the Maryland Juvenile), we put the blinkers on and changed the bit, and it’s all worked well.”
Jockey Forest Boyce noticed a difference in the Spectacular Bid. “The last couple of times, he lugged in real bad. He ran a little straighter today. I think that really made a big difference.”
Never worse than second from four starts, Brian Schartz’s Crab Daddy won his maiden in the restricted Pennsylvania Nursery at Parx on Nov. 27, then completed his juvenile campaign with a rallying second in the Future Stars Stakes there on Dec. 30.
Crab Daddy finished a game second in the Spectacular Bid, a head behind Barbadian Runner.
“He probably had to move a little earlier than he wanted to just the way the race was setting up,” said trainer Linda Albert. “It looked a little scary down the stretch like he might get nothing, and then he charged on home. He did pretty good. I was proud of him.”
The Spectacular Bid marked Crab Daddy’s first race in blinkers. “We were thrilled with that, having him get up on the bit,” Albert continued. “It was the first race he ran in where he actually took some hold instead of wandering around aimlessly the first part of the race.”
Recently, if not for bad luck, John Hazard’s Sacred Thunder would have no luck. After winning the James F. Lewis Stakes on Nov. 9, Sacred Thunder had troubled trips in his subsequent three efforts, including the Spectacular Bid.
After breaking from the inside post, Sacred Thunder was behind horses most of the way before rallying stoutly once clear in the stretch to finish third, a half-length behind the winner.
“That’s three in a row where he’s had rough trips,” trainer Gary Capuano said after his Secret Zipper won an allowance race at Laurel on Jan. 31. “Post position is so critical. That race there, even turning for home, you figure somebody’s got to move, but what are you going to do?”
Sacred Thunder again drew the tricky inside post position, but Capuano has looked forward to stretching the colt back out in distance. Sacred Thunder wired a maiden special weight field at Delaware in his lone prior race at a mile.
RKTN Racing’s Pay Billy steps up into stakes company following two consecutive wins. He took a first-level allowance field gate to wire over this course and distance on Jan. 25 and received a career-best 80 Beyer Speed Figure.
“That was a great race,” said trainer Michael Gorham. “When he turned for home, and [jockey Raul Mena] was sitting on him, and the other horses were riding behind him, I felt pretty confident. He was a big 2-year-old. I always thought he wanted to run longer, and it just took a little time to get him focused on what he’s doing. He’s really put it together.”
Gorham prefers to see Pay Billy “fairly close to the pace, if not on the pace” in the Miracle Wood.
Trainer Jerry Robb entered two sophomores, but he said on Tuesday morning that morning line favorite Studlydoright would likely run Saturday in the John Battaglia Memorial Stakes at Turfway Park.
Robb will start Hard Ten Stables’ All the Hardways, who finished second to Pay Billy on Jan. 25 before taking a first-level allowance two weeks later.
