Battle Cry will be moving back to two turns for the $100,000 Thirty Eight Go Go on Saturday at Laurel Park one start after facing eventual Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint winner Soul of an Angel.
The Thirty Eight Go Go is one of three stakes on Laurel’s card. It features fillies and mares over 1 1/16 miles. The $100,000 James F. Lewis III and $100,000 Smart Halo both are for 2-year-olds.
Battle Cry, who is based at Gulfstream Park, was supplemented to the Thirty Eight Go Go. She also was entered in a Friday night stakes at Delta Downs in Louisiana.
“She’s running Maryland,” trainer Victor Barboza Jr. said.
Battle Cry is part of a field of eight. She enters off a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Princess Rooney, a seven-furlong race Soul of an Angel won Sept. 21 at Gulfstream prior to her win in the Breeders’ Cup. The race was the first since June for Battle Cry, who has registered three of her last four wins at two turns. They have come on the Tapeta surface at Gulfstream.
“Two turns, she’s run good every time,” Barboza said. “I think she’s much better on a synthetic track, but on dirt, she’s good. She’s won several times [on dirt]. She’s never run at Laurel, but she’s run [on dirt] in Delaware. And she ran on the dirt in the Princess Rooney, ran a good race against Soul of an Angel.”
Barboza said he is hopeful there is a decent amount of speed for Battle Cry to stalk Saturday in the Thirty Eight Go Go. She will break from post 4 under Jaime Rodriguez.
“My mare runs four or five lengths off the pace,” Barboza said.
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Battle Cry is a winner of 13 races and nearly $400,000 for Skull Stable.
Continentalcongres should be up on the pace when she breaks from post 2. Others who figure to show speed include Malibu Beauty and Sandra D.
An honest pace would benefit Foxy Junior, a stalker who is looking for her third consecutive stakes win. She is moving into open company after taking a pair of restricted events, the Plum Pretty at Parx Racing and the Maryland Million Distaff at Laurel.
Smart Halo
Daze, who has won the first two races of her career by a combined margin of 15 1/2 lengths, will get tested for class when she makes her stakes debut in the Smart Halo.
“It’s time for it,” trainer Brittany Russell said.
The Smart Halo is a six-furlong race for 2-year-old fillies. The field of seven includes two-time stakes winner Caprice and the stakes-placed runners Not Too Late and Great Andrei.
Daze was a debut winner over maiden special weight rivals Sept. 13 at Laurel. She backed up the 7 1/2-length win with a first-level allowance victory in her most recent start Oct. 5, also at Laurel.
“She’s really nice,” Russell said. “She’s done everything right all along the way, obviously, being 2 for 2. Look, I don’t know what she’s beat, but she’s trained well in the morning, like a horse that should go on and do something. I like her a lot.”
Daze owns the best last-race Beyer Speed Figure in the Smart Halo, a 71. She led throughout in the allowance, increasing her advantage at each point of call in the seven-furlong race.
“I like how she ran and I like how she came out of it,” Russell said. “She’s trained forwardly since.”
Daze will break from post 2 under regular rider Sheldon Russell.
“She’s drawn inside, she’s naturally fast,” Brittany Russell said. “I think Sheldon will shake her out of there, see how she breaks, and go from there. I think we keep it pretty simple. I think she’ll be forwardly placed.”
Caprice won the Smart Wonder and Blue Hen at Delaware Park. She is cutting back in distance from a mile, having run second last out in the White Clay Creek. Caprice is unbeaten at one turn for Runnymoore Racing.
James F. Lewis III
Do It for Michael and It’s Hammertime will both be looking for the fourth win of their young careers in the six-furlong James F. Lewis III.
Do It for Michael is 3 for 4 and comes into the Lewis off a win at the distance in the Maryland Million Nursery.
It’s Hammertime is 3 for 4, with stakes wins in the First State Dash and the Rocky Run at Delaware Park.
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