Top Contenders Still in Place for Redrawn Battaglia
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Photo: Dave W. Harmon
Somelikeithotbrown
A pair of grade/group 1-placed 3-year-olds are still scheduled to meet under the lights Friday, Feb. 15 at Turfway Park in the rescheduled $75,000 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes for 3-year-olds, when the colt Somelikeithotbrown takes on the filly The Mackem Bullet.
Both top horses remain in the redrawn field after the race was postponed from Feb. 8 because of heavy rain in the Northern Kentukcy area.
The 1 1/16-mile John Battaglia on Turfway's all-weather surface is a prep race for the $200,000 Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) on the same course March 9. The latter race awards Road to the Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top four finishers on a scale of 20-8-4-2.
A dozen 3-year-olds initially had been entered in the John Battaglia and 10 are entered in the redrawn field, with top contenders Skychai Racing and Sand Dollar Stable's Somelikeithotbrown and Katsumi Yoshida's The Mackem Bullet still set to go.
A son of dual classic winner Big Brown , Somelikeithotbrown will be making his first start since closing 2018 with a third-place finish in the Nov. 2 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T) at Churchill Downs. Trained by Mike Maker, Somelikeithotbrown will also be making his first start on a synthetic surface. In his past four starts, all on turf, he has a win and three stakes-placings.
A daughter of Society Rock, The Mackem Bullet has experience on the Turfway surface. Trained by Wesley Ward, she won an allowance-optional claiming race for juvenile fillies by 10 1/2 lengths on New Year's Eve at Turfway. After initially drawing post 12 for the Battalia, The Mackem Bullet drew post 3 in the redrawn field.
The Mackem Bullet earned placings in three group stakes in England last year, including a close second to Fairyland in the Juddmonte Cheveley Park Stakes (G1) at Newmarket. In her North American debut she finished sixth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T).
Turfway Park, Friday, February 15, 2019, Race 5Entries: John Battaglia Memorial S.
PP
Horse
Jockey
Wgt
Trainer
M/L
1
1Echo Alpha Six (KY)
Ty Kennedy
118
Claudie Marshall Godsey, Jr.
10/1
2
2Dabo (IL)
John McKee
118
Dale L. Romans
12/1
3
3The Mackem Bullet (IRE)
Luan Machado
113
Wesley A. Ward
2/1
4
4Dynamic Racer (KY)
Euclyn E. Prentice, Jr.
118
Ronald Kahles
20/1
5
5Wallace (KY)
Perry Wayne Ouzts
122
Kelsey Danner
12/1
6
6Maya Solomea (KY)
Abel Lezcano
118
Adolfo Macias
30/1
7
7Kentucky Allstar (KY)
Rodney A. Prescott
118
Michael J. Maker
12/1
8
8Somelikeithotbrown (NY)
Rafael Manuel Hernandez
118
Michael J. Maker
6/5
9
9Zulu Legend (MI)
Christian P. Pilares
118
Robert M. Gorham
20/1
10
10Over Protective (KY)
Malcolm Franklin
118
Ronald Keith Kinmon
12/1
