AMERICAN
GRADED STAKES PREVIEWS
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BOLD RULER H. (G3), 8TH-BEL, $100,000, 3YO/UP, 6F, 4:43 P.M. EDT, 5-10 |
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| 1 |
MAN OF DANGER, 6, G, by Tiger RidgeCope Lady, by Copelan O-Atkins S Stephen; B-Pickel Gary (Fl) |
| 2 |
CALLMETONY, 7, G, by Runaway GroomFirey Comet, by Red Ransom O-Valente Roddy J; B-T. V. Smith & Thomas L. Nichols (Ky) |
| 3 |
LUCKY ISLAND (ARG), 4, c, by Lucky RobertoEbrolize, by Equalize O-Shadwell Stable; B-Arroyo de Luna (Arg) |
| 4 |
FOREFATHERS, 4, c, by Gone WestStar of Goshen, by Lord At War (Arg) O-Zayat Stables LLC; B-Cobra Farm (Ky) |
| 5 |
EXECUTIVE FLEET, 5, h, by Northern AfleetSaralina Jo, by Executive Order O-Team Solaris Stable; B-Merlet Norman (Fl) |
| 6 |
GOLD AND ROSES, 6, G, by Gold TokenWon Perfect Rose, by Air Forbes Won O-Gregory Henry C; B-Gregory Seth (NY) |
| 7 |
COUNCIL MEMBER, 6, h, by Seattle SlewZoe Montana, by Seeking the Gold O-Karen & Mickey Taylor LLC; B-Dean Greenwood, LLC (Ky) |
A well-matched field of seven will go postward in the $100,000 Bold Ruler H.
(G3) at Belmont on Saturday. Carter H. (G1) runner-up EXECUTIVE FLEET (Northern
Afleet) has been in career form as of late for Linda Rice, and we give the
five-year-old a slight edge. The Florida-bred struggled in
2007 to clear his second allowance condition but has really turned the corner in
recent times, dominating two straight allowance fields in sharp fashion prior to
running a huge Carter, posting a 108 BRIS Speed figure. The bay ranks first in
BRIS Prime Power (147.1), is two for three at Belmont, and will be guided by regular rider Chuckie Lopez.
CALLMETONY (Runaway Groom) has won or placed in 39 of his 51 career starts
for Bruce Levine, including two straight tallies in advance of this start. The
seven-year-old gelding loves Belmont, evidenced by his 9-5-2-2 local mark, and
the presence of Edgar Prado is never a bad thing. Consider the Kentucky-bred
another top contender in this well-meant bunch.
FOREFATHERS (Gone West) has kept good company throughout his career and exits
a fine fourth-place finish in the Commonwealth S. (G2) at Keeneland. The Bill
Mott trainee was a good second over this oval in the Jerome H. (G2) in the fall and is a tough customer when he’s right, so we’ll put him
in the exotics mix under Kent Desormeaux. If the four-year-old was more
consistent, he’d be our choice.
LUCKY ISLAND (Arg) (Lucky Roberto) has been easily best in his two allowance
conquers and will get the acid test in this field. The four-year-old topped
triple-digit Speed figures in his last pair and has trained well in preparation
for this, so a good showing is expected under the guidance of Alan
Garcia. It’s tough to back the dark bay to win here, but he should factor some
with his best.
Hard-knocking, New York-bred GOLD AND ROSES (Gold Token) was second versus
open company last out at Philadelphia Park and has been freshened for this test
by conditioner Tom Bush. The gelded six-year-old is not a pure sprinter, but he’s
compiled a useful 13-3-3-2 mark at this distance and has won or placed in
four of his eight starts over this oval. The dark bay is another who could have
a big chance if the race falls a certain way. Rajiv Maragh will be in the irons.
Levine’s second entry is the speedy MAN OF DANGER (Tiger Ridge), last seen
finishing a
game second in the Toboggan H. (G3). The bay six-year-old has been first or
second in six of his last seven outings, and captured his lone career try over
this surface, so if he’s left alone early he is a viable candidate for a big
prize. We feel that the Florida-bred will face some early pressure, and that he
may be vulnerable late beneath John Velazquez.
The California experiment for COUNCIL MEMBER (Seattle Slew) didn’t exactly go
as planned, and the six-year-old will make his first start for John Hertler in this
one. The bay’s current form leaves something to be desired and we must look
elsewhere on this occasion.