The Pizza Man Points to Stars and Stripes
Image:
Description:
Photo: Four Footed Fotos
The Pizza Man wins 2015 Arlington Million
Midwest Thoroughbreds' The Pizza Man, in preparation for his next start July 9, worked a half-mile July 2 at Arlington International Racecourse.
The Pizza Man, winner of last year's Arlington Million (gr. IT), went four furlongs in :48 1/5 on the Polytrack surface. The 6-year-old Illinois homebred by English Channel is nominated to the Stars and Stripes Stakes at 1 1/2 miles and the Arlington Handicap at 1 3/16 miles (both gr. IIIT).
"I think we're probably going in the Stars and Stripes," trainer Roger Brueggemann told Arlington media officials. "We're still hashing it out but I think that's where we're going to go. We're going to do what we did last year—double enter and then see what the race looks like, but we're leaning towards the Stars and Stripes."
The top three finishers in each of the stakes on "Million Preview Day" will earn an automatic berth to a correlating stakes on the Arlington International Festival of Racing program Aug. 13. The Stars and Stripes is a prep for the American St. Leger (gr. IIIT), while the Arlington Handicap leads up to the Arlington Million.
The Pizza Man has won 16 of 28 starts and is closing in on $2 million in earnings.