OZONE PARK, N.Y. - If Michelle Nevin can keep him on the track, the regally bred Full Moon Madness could be a sprinter to reckon with this winter at Aqueduct.
On Sunday, in his first start off an 11-month layoff, Full Moon Madness won a second-level allowance race by a head over the stakes winner Surveillance. Full Moon Madness, by Into Mischief out of the Grade 1-winning mare By the Moon, was making his first start since he won a first-level allowance race here on New Year’s Day.
Full Moon Madness was sidelined by a combination of bone bruising and foot problems, trainer Michelle Nevin said. In the interim, Full Moon Madness was gelded.
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“He’s his own worst enemy, he’s just always been this real heavyset horse, he doesn’t have great feet, it’s been a battle to keep him going race to race,” said Nevin, who trains Full Moon Madness for Samantha Siegel’s Jay Em Ess Stable. “Since we gelded him, he lost a lot of that heaviness above his shoulder, hind end and he’s tightened up a lot more. He’s been training excellent since he came back in, hopefully it’s the right move.”
Full Moon Madness has plenty of sprint stakes options here this winter, including the $150,000 Gravesend on Dec. 28 and the Grade 3, $175,000 Toboggan expected to be run Feb. 1.
Asked about the Gravesend, Nevin said, “if he comes out of this and he’s bouncing I’m not going to get in his way.”
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