Studlydoright winning his debut race at Laurel Park. (Jim McCue/MJC)
Among Three Stakes Worth $400,000 in Purses Saturday
David Joseph/Maryland Jockey Club
LAUREL, Md. – Following three consecutive trips to Saratoga, where he became both a stakes winner and Grade 3-placed, Mens Grille Racing’s Studlydoright returns to his home course of Laurel Park looking to resume his winning ways in Saturday’s $150,000 Laurel Futurity.
The 98th running of the Futurity for 2-year-olds and 95th renewal of the $150,000 Selima for 2-year-old fillies, each scheduled for 1 1/16 miles on the Dahlia turf course, co-headline a 10-race program with the $100,000 Japan Turf Cup for 3-year-olds and up at 1 ½ miles.
By Florida Derby (G1) and Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Nyquist, Studlydoright is out of Hall of Famer Curlin mare Peach of a Gal, who made 13 of her 16 career starts on turf where she won one stakes and was Grade 3-placed. The forecast is calling for rain in the days up to and including Saturday.
“I know a lot of his family handles the turf well, so I was looking forward to getting him on the turf. I breezed him on it and he seemed to love it,” trainer John ‘Jerry’ Robb said. “We might not find that out, but I don’t mind running in a short field in the mud, either.”
Studlydoright graduated at first asking sprinting 4 ½ furlongs May 5 over a sloppy and sealed Laurel main track, then sprung a 13-1 upset in the June 6 Tremont to kick off the first Belmont Stakes (G1) weekend at Saratoga. He returned to run second as the favorite in the July 13 Sanford (G3), beaten a length, then encountered trouble early and late when seventh in the Hopeful (G1) Sept. 2, at seven furlongs his longest trip to date.
“Every single race he’s hit the gate leaving there. He’s a big horse and I just wonder if he’s not standing square. All it takes is to be standing cockeyed a little bit and he’ll hit it, as big as he is,” Robb said. “Two starts back it was a very strong speed-biased racetrack. I think he was the only horse that closed all day on anybody. He closed so well he even though he won the race. One jump past the wire he was in front. The last time, when he went to make his move, [sixth-place finisher Mentee] ducked over in front of him and stood him on his head and just took all his momentum away. He had no chance from there.”
Nine of the 14 horses in the Futurity, including main-track-only entrants Pascaline and Reggie Runs Rogue, are coming in off wins including Jacques Dupuis Jr., Luke Bourque and Bobby Sutton’s Soleil Volant, whose name means ‘flying sun’ in French. He was sixth on a muddy track in his July 24 unveiling at Delaware Park, where he graduated in a 7 ½-furlong turf sprint over good ground Aug. 17.
“A little bit of a surprise maybe that he won last time off of just one race, but he was very brave in doing so. He had every chance to throw in the towel, but he really ran very gamely,” trainer Graham Motion said. “When they came to him the last part he really ran on and did it nicely, and he’s really done well since the race.”
Motion also entered Harrell Ventures and Starlight Racing’s Academy. The Oscar Performance colt has raced twice, both going 1 1/16 miles on the grass, crossing the wire first by a neck in a front-running effort Sept. 7 at Colonial Downs, only to be disqualified and placed second for bumping with runner-up Patrick’s Promise.
“I was shocked that they took him down, to be honest. I was gobsmacked,” Motion said. “He ran a very brave race that day. He led every step of the way; the horse came to him and it was a really good horse race. I thought he was really gutsy.
“One reservation I might have is coming back in three weeks off of such a big effort,” he added. “We’ve been a little unlucky with this horse. We entered him all summer in Saratoga, and he kept not getting in. I think I entered him four times and he didn’t get in. Maybe we got a little behind, but I feel he deserved a shot in this race off of the race he ran last time. He ran a winning race.”
Other last-out winners entered in the Futurity are Stormy Flight, Surfside Moon, Jus Too Fly, Gotta Have a Guy, Just a Fair Shake and Lazlo. Notmyfirstrodeo, Kitty’s Son and Hard Circle complete the field, the latter third by a length sprinting seven furlongs on the turf Sept. 5 at Kentucky Downs in his lone start for trainer Mike Maker.
“He was unlucky to lose last time,” Maker said. “He had some trouble leaving the gate but it was a terrific performance. I think the added ground will be to his benefit.”
The Futurity has a rich history dating back to 1921 inaugural winner Morvich, who would go on to win the 1922 Kentucky Derby. The Futurity has also been won by Triple Crown champions Affirmed, Citation and Secretariat along with Barbaro, In Reality, Honest Pleasure, Quadrangle, Riva Ridge, Spectacular Bid and Tapit.
