On Leave to Open Season in Honey Fox Stakes
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Kenny Martin
On Leave won the My Charmer Stakes in December
On Leave figures to be in her comfort zone when the daughter of War Front opens her 5-year-old season March 31 in the $250,000 Honey Fox Stakes (G3T) at Gulfstream Park.
The Honey Fox is contested at one-mile on the Gulfstream turf, the same distance and course where she posted a hard-fought victory in the My Charmer Stakes (G3T) in her final start of 2017. That December effort marked the first try on the Gulfstream turf for the Stuart Janney III homebred, who also improved to four wins from six starts at the mile distance.
Trained by Shug McGaughey, On Leave, the 3-1 second-choice on the morning line, will start from the outside in the expected field of 10 older fillies and mares.
On Leave isn't the only homebred daughter of War Front making her seasonal debut in the Honey Fox as grade 3 winner Lull also will get her year started Saturday.
Claiborne Farm and Adele Dilschneider's Lull won stakes in Kentucky and Southern California last year, taking the Kentucky Downs Ladies Sprint Stakes in September before securing her first graded win in the Autumn Miss Stakes (G3T) in October at Santa Anita Park.
Lull, the 5-2 morning-line favorite, is one of two entered by trainer Christophe Clement, who also will send out late-running Stormy Victoria. Tango Uniform Racing and The Elkstone Group's Stormy Victoria rallied from 11th to win the South Beach Stakes Jan. 27 after finishing third in the My Charmer, just a half-length behind On Leave.
"Both fillies are doing great," Clement said. "Lull is a free-galloper. She'll be close to the pace and she's a top-class filly. She's a lovely horse to be around. Stormy Victoria just had a break and she's on her way back. As you know she won the stake over the same track last time and I'm very happy with her."
Making her graded debut is Deborah Wilson's Res Ipsa, trained by Ian Wilkes. The 5-year-old daughter of champion turf horse English Channel ended her 4-year-old campaign with back-to-back wins but has not raced since a 1 3/4-length allowance triumph going 1 1/16 miles Oct. 13 at Keeneland.
"The owner likes to give them a little bit of time. The filly really improved and got really good and we just decided to give her some time to mature and come back as a 5-year-old," Wilkes said. "She got good last year. She just kept improving as we went on, which is good. As she's gotten older, she's gotten to maturing and she's getting good."
The 33rd running of the one-mile Honey Fox is among seven stakes, five graded, worth $2.3 million in purses on the $1 million Xpressbet Florida Derby (G1) day program.
Gulfstream Park, Saturday, March 31, 2018, Race 11Entries: Honey Fox S. (G3T)
PP
Horse
Jockey
Wgt
Trainer
M/L
1
1Glory to Kitten (KY)
Robby Albarado
121
Jorge R. Abreu
10/1
2
2Lull (KY)
Jose L. Ortiz
123
Christophe Clement
5/2
3
3Stormy Victoria (FR)
Tyler Gaffalione
121
Christophe Clement
4/1
4
4Team of Teams (KY)
John R. Velazquez
121
James A. Jerkens
8/1
5
5Conquest Hardcandy (NY)
Edgard J. Zayas
117
Antonio Sano
20/1
6
6Grizzel (IRE)
Luis Saez
119
Michael J. Doyle
10/1
7
7Island Reward (KY)
Nik Juarez
117
Yvon Belsoeur
15/1
8
8Res Ipsa (KY)
Julien R. Leparoux
119
Ian R. Wilkes
12/1
9
9Liberty Kitten (KY)
Albin Jimenez
117
Michael P. De Paulo
20/1
10
10On Leave (KY)
Irad Ortiz, Jr.
123
Claude R. McGaughey III
3/1
