Plenty of Questions in One-Turn Pat Day Mile

While the $250,000 Pat Day Mile Stakes (G3) on the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) undercard is also for 3-year-olds, it’s one-turn-mile distance at Churchill Downs makes it a totally different race than the 1 1/4-mile headliner.

While two in the field held Derby aspirations as soon as a few weeks ago, they'll need to be on their toes to run with other speed-to-lead types.

Local Hero and Uncontested are horses more closely associated with the Derby than the Pat Day Mile in their last starts.

The Steve Asmussen-trained Local Hero, owned by e Five Racing Thoroughbreds, fared well at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots this winter but came away with third-place finishes in both the 1 1/16-mile Risen Star Stakes (G2) and nine-furlong TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby (G2). In his 2-year-old finale, he finished second in a Churchill maiden special weight.

Trainer Wayne Catalano also tested the deeper waters going longer with Harry Rosenblum and Robert LaPenta’s Uncontested after the Tiz Wonderful colt won Oaklawn Park’s Smarty Jones Stakes at a mile in early January. He has been sharpened up with a bullet :58 1/5 move April 25. He has led after a half-mile in all five of his starts, from 6 1/2 furlongs to 1 1/16 miles.

Perhaps taking advantage of the distance the best will be Woodford Racing’s You're to Blame, a Chad Brown-trained colt who rallied well to finish third behind Long Haul Bay in Aqueduct Racetrack’s seven-furlong Bay Shore Stakes (G3) April 8. Including maiden tests, he’s 2-1-1 in five one-turn starts, including a maiden-breaker last fall at Belmont Park.

The swiftest of lot may be the New York-bred Bobby On Fleek, also trained by Brown and named for his mentor the late Bobby Frankel. By Frost Giant  , Bobby On Fleek strolled to a 3 1/4-length win March 24 going six furlongs at Aqueduct in his first outing since last August.

To counter the speed, Lael Stables’ No Dozing came from seventh to just miss in a blanket finish in Keeneland’s Lexington Stakes (G3) at 1 1/16 miles April 15.

The race includes a runner from the Churchill Downs Racing Club (Warrior's Reward  ) and the Fair Grounds Racing Club (Excitations). Warrior's Reward, from the barn of D. Wayne Lukas, made quite a splash at 2, when he won the restricted Spendthrift Stallion Stakes Oct. 30 to break his maiden. He’s wintered well at Oaklawn, where he won an allowance/optional claiming race in March going a mile and ran second as the favorite in the Northern Spur Stakes April 15. Excitations, an Al Stall Jr.-trained son of Into Mischief   sports a 2-1-1 slate from four starts and last time out was a convincing winner of an entry-level allowance race at Keeneland going seven furlongs.

Pat Day Mile S. Presented by LG&E and KU (G3)

Churchill Downs, Saturday, May 06, 2017, Race 8

• 1m
• Dirt
• $250,000
• 3 yo
• 2:45 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Local Hero (KY)	Florent Geroux	118	Steven M. Asmussen	5/1
2	2Bitumen (KY)	Joe Bravo	118	Eddie Kenneally	10/1
3	3Rapid Dial (FL)	Julien R. Leparoux	118	Ingrid Mason	30/1
4	4Uncontested (KY)	Mike E. Smith	120	Wayne M. Catalano	5/1
5	5No Dozing (KY)	Joel Rosario	118	Arnaud Delacour	5/1
6	6Greeley and Ben (KY)	Calvin H. Borel	118	Gary A. Thomas	30/1
7	7Colonelsdarktemper (KY)	Jon Kenton Court	118	William H. Fires	30/1
8	8Wild Shot (KY)	Corey J. Lanerie	118	George R. Arnold, II	4/1
9	9Excitations (KY)	Miguel Mena	118	Albert M. Stall, Jr.	10/1
10	10You're to Blame (KY)	Javier Castellano	118	Chad C. Brown	10/1
11	11Sonic Mule (KY)	John R. Velazquez	118	Todd A. Pletcher	10/1
12	12Bobby On Fleek (NY)	Jose L. Ortiz	118	Chad C. Brown	10/1
13	13Warrior's Club (KY)	Flavien Prat	118	D. Wayne Lukas	12/1