KEENELAND DAILY NOTEBOOK
SUNDAY, APRIL 23, 2006
by Brian P. Turner
A field of nine three-year-old fillies was entered but only five went to the
gate for Sunday’s Appalachian S. which was contested at eight furlongs on the
lawn. The Todd Pletcher-trained J’Ray (Distant View) was sent off the favorite
based on her perfect four-for-four record over the grass, which includes a win
right here at Keeneland. After laying near the pace through early fractions of
:24 3/5 and :48 1/5, the chestnut just didn’t have the needed kick through the
stretch and crossed the finish line in third.
In the end, it was the Patrick Biancone-trained LADY OF VENICE (Fr) (Loup
Solitaire), making her first start in North America, who rallied from just off
the pace for the victory. From the moment the gates opened, the filly appeared
to be full of run but relaxed nicely for jockey Julien Leparoux through the
early stages of the race. Once the field hit the stretch and her jockey asked
for her best, Lady of Venice responded with a powerful late kick that propelled
her to the wire 2 1/4 lengths clear of her nearest rival.
May Night (Gulch) rallied from off the pace and closed with a nice turn of
foot through the stretch to cross the wire in second, three parts of a length
clear of J’Ray.
There were five sprints contested on the main track Sunday and horses on or
near the pace won of four them as well as the lone route on the day. In addition
to the feature, there were two turf routes on Sunday with horses coming from off
the pace winning both of them.
Leparoux teamed up with trainer Biancone for a pair of winners on the day to
firmly solidify his place atop the jockey standings with 16 winners for the
meet. Shaun Bridgmohan booted home a winner today to move into a tie for the
second spot with the sidelined John Velazquez. The pair has 12 winners each.
Javier Castellano added a win to his total today and is in fourth with 10.
As for the trainers, both Pletcher and Nick Zito added no winners to their
totals today and remain in a deadlock atop the standings with 10 winners each.
Dale Romans also went winless on the day but remains in third with eight.
Horses to Watch
2ND – SENTRY (Silver Deputy) is yet another talented two-year-old from the
barn of trainer Steve Asmussen. The colt vied for the lead through an opening
quarter that went in :22 before taking command shortly after and cruising to the
wire for an easy 6 1/2-length victory under little more than a hand ride.
8TH – Lady of Venice looked extremely impressive in the feature and could
prove to be a solid stakes performer for Biancone.
Outlook for Wednesday, April 26
A small field of six is entered for Wednesday’s Bewitch S. (G3) for fillies
and mares, four-years-old and up, going 12 furlongs on the lawn. NOBLE STELLA
(Ger) (Monsun) appears to be the class of the field and is coming off of a
third-place effort in the Orchid H. (G3) at Gulfstream Park. The five-year-old
mare has had a bit of trouble getting into the winner’s circle as of late, as
she has finished third in each of her last three starts, all against graded
stakes company. Trainer Roger Attfield may have found a nice spot for her here
though.
SWEET SCIENCE (Diesis [GB]) loves the Keeneland lawn, as her record of
3-2-1-0 will stand testament. The bay is coming off of a nice 3 3/4-length
victory against allowance company at this distance earlier in the meet. The mare
has only finished out of the money once in 11 tries over the grass. SHARED
DREAMS (GB) (Seeking The Gold) will be making her second start in North America
for trainer Christophe Clement. The bay is coming off of a nice win at this
distance on the lawn at Gulfstream Park and could be sitting on a top effort.
LOUVE ROYALE (Ire) (Peintre Celebre) is a steady competitor on the lawn and
already has a win here earlier in the meet. The chestnut comes from Biancone’s
barn and could surprise with a top effort.
Wednesday’s forecast calls for mostly sunny skies and a high of 60.
Wednesday’s Best Plays
3RD – AUDACIOUS CHLOE (More Than Ready) is coming off an impressive bullet
clocking of :48 from the gate here over the Keeneland strip. The chestnut comes
from the barn of Pletcher, who wins with 20 percent of his debut maiden special
weight starters and 25 percent of the maiden special weight races he has a
starter in overall. Progeny of More Than Ready win 16 percent of the time in
their debut races, which only adds to the list of things to like.
8TH – Noble Stella appears to be in good form right now and is due to return
to the winner’s circle.