March Into Amsterdam Off Two Stakes Victories
Image:
Description:
Robert LaPenta's March will try to secure a third straight graded stakes win when he starts in the $200,000 Amsterdam Stakes (gr. II) Saturday, Aug. 1, at Saratoga Race Course.
March enters the 6 1/2 furlong sprint for 3-year-olds off an upset victory in the Woody Stephens Stakes (gr. II) on the Belmont Stakes day card June 6. The Blame colt will try to extend his graded stakes victory streak to three races as he also won the Bay Shore Stakes (gr. III) April 4 at Aqueduct Racetrack.
While unraced in nearly two months, March has worked four times for trainer Chad Brown since July 4, including a half-mile breeze in :47.85 July 25 at Saratoga, the fifth-fastest move of 109 at the distance.
"He came out of the Woody Stephens in good shape and he's had steady works since," said Brown. "He's been really sharp, particularly lately. It's a little bit of a cutback to 6 1/2 (furlongs) but I think he can handle it. I'd rather run him at seven but this is the race that's available and hopefully the sixteenth less wont' affect him too much. I suppose a lot will depend on the pace, if the pace is quick enough, he should be able to get up in time at 6 1/2 if he's good enough and, if not, the timing of the race should still serve as a prep for the (Aug. 29) King's Bishop (gr. I)."
March isn't the only Amsterdam horse entering off a stakes win as Jerry Durant's Holy Boss will try for a fourth straight victory after taking the Chick Lang Stakes by two lengths May 16 at Pimlico Race Course and Bermuda Limestone Thoroughbreds' Requite enters off a win in the Big Cypress Handicap June 7 at Gulfstream Park, the second straight win for the son of Warrior's Reward .
"He's put three really good races together in a row and now we'll kind of step back up here," trainer Steve Asmussen said of Holy Boss, the 5-2 favorite on the morning line. "I thought that he ran really well at Oaklawn and then the race at Pimlico really validated that spring form, and I thought that off of that race we could seriously consider the marquee 3-year-old sprint races."
Saturday's expected field also includes grade III winner Barbados, who will be making his first start since a runner-up finish in the July 5 Carry Back Stakes (gr. III) at Gulfstream.
While last year's Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I) fourth-place finisher The Great War, who hasn't raced since an off-the-board finish in the John Battaglia Memorial Stakes Feb. 28 at Turfway Park was entered, trainer Wesley Ward said July 30 that he'd be scratched and pointed to the Quick Call Stakes Aug. 6 sprinting on the Saratoga turf. That defection would leave a field of six.
"We drew a beautiful post, but the field is so contentious. I think this year, the 3-year-old sprinters that are in there are really going to be emerging as something special," Ward said. "He bled really bad in his last start and I just thought coming off the layoff, I really didn't want to have to get him into a race where I'm sure some of those guys will probably be in the Breeders' Cup Sprint (gr. I). They're that good. I figured maybe go to a surface that he's a little bit more used to rather than having his first sprint start on the dirt against tough horses. Going in [the Quick Call] might be a little easier; distance won't be a problem."
Amsterdam S. (gr. II)
Saratoga Race Course , Saturday, August 01, 2015, Race 5
- 6 1/2f
- Dirt
- $200,000
- 3 yo
- 3:17 PM (local)
| PP | Horse | Jockey | Weight | Trainer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Requite (KY) | Javier Castellano | 119 | George Weaver |
| 2 | Bluegrass Singer (KY) | Jose Lezcano | 119 | Marcus J. Vitali |
| 3 | March (KY) | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | 123 | Chad C. Brown |
| 4 | Victory Is Sweet (KY) | Jose L. Ortiz | 117 | Michelle Nevin |
| 5 | Barbados (KY) | Luis Saez | 123 | Michael A. Tomlinson |
| 6 | The Great War (KY) | Joel Rosario | 117 | Wesley A. Ward |
| 7 | Holy Boss (KY) | Ricardo Santana, Jr. | 121 | Steven M. Asmussen |