SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – In a New York minute – or 59.90 seconds to be precise – in last month’s Harvey Pack Stakes, Bring Theband Home raised his profile from nondescript to a serious player in the turf sprint division.
However, coming back in four weeks off a career-best performance makes him a bounce candidate in Sunday’s Grade 2, $300,000 Troy Stakes at Saratoga, perhaps opening the 5 1/2-furlong turf race up to a few potentially more attractive prices.
Bring Theband Home, a 5-year-old gelding by Into Mischief, rolled to a front-running, 4 1/4-length victory in the Harvey Pack, earning a 109 Beyer Speed Figure, by far a career best.
“He ran such a huge race that there is definitely concern,” trainer Mark Casse said. “The good news is I think there can be some regression and he’s still going to be extremely tough. I don’t know it’s going to take his 109 Beyer to make him the winner. I feel good about his chances.”
Casse said he had expectations for Bring Theband Home all along, but the Harvey Pack performance “exceeded my expectations,” Casse said. “You just don’t see turf sprinters separate themselves from the field like he did.”
In the Troy, which drew seven for turf and one main track only, Bring Theband Home looms the primary speed.
Javier Castellano, who entered Friday’s card at Saratoga 0 for 42 since his win on this horse on July 4, has a return call.
Alogon, trained by Ned Allard, comes out of a third-place finish in the Grade 1 Jaipur here on June 8, a race that has proven quite productive. Coppola and Think Big, fifth and seventh, respectively, in the Jaipur, have come back to win stakes. My Boy Prince, second in the Jaipur, got beat a neck by Canadian Horse of the Year Patches O’Houlihan in the Grade 2 Highlander Stakes at Woodbine.
Alogon ended his 2024 campaign with a dead-heat victory in the Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship. In two starts this year, he finished third, beaten one length in the Elusive Quality, a race in which he had some traffic. In the Jaipur, the course was a bit on the soft side and he beaten a nose for second.
“The only thing the rider said was he handled the turf course just fine, but not perfectly,” trainer Ned Allard said. “It was a yielding turf course, and quite yielding. Right before the wire he changed leads again trying to get comfortable on that turf course and it cost him the nose. He wasn’t going to win it. I thought he could have been second. That he’s training as well as he is, I think we have a really good shot.”
Irad Ortiz Jr., who was aboard for the dead-heat win at Aqueduct last November, is back aboard on Sunday.
Our Shot has longshot potential. He got good at this time last year, finishing second in a pair of races up here, including the Harvey Pack, before winning the Grade 2 Woodford at Keeneland.
This year, Our Shot finished eighth in the Jaipur over a yielding course and sixth in the Harvey Pack over a rock-hard turf. With the rain that fell here Thursday and some drying and warm days forecast Friday through the weekend, the turf course should be in excellent condition on Sunday.
“Maybe things will be just right,” said John Terranova, the trainer of Our Shot. “I love how he worked the other day. He’s been consistent. Hopefully, he jumps up and things really set up for him.”
Joel Rosario will ride Our Shot from the outside post.
Senbei, a front-running winner of the Ashley T. Cole for New York-breds, looms the potential other speed in the Troy. Let My People Go, a second-level allowance winner at Churchill Downs for Joe Sharp; Determined Kingdom, second in the Ben’s Cat Stakes at Laurel Park; and Twenty Six Black, fourth in the Ashley T. Cole for Horacio De Paz, complete the field.
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