OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The combination of no racing on this circuit in 10 days, the absence of turf racing at Churchill Downs, and a gorgeous forecast may have led to a mad dash to the entry box for the first two turf stakes to be offered at the Belmont at the Big A meet.
Fifteen 3-year-old fillies were entered for Friday’s opening-day feature, the $150,000 Winter Memories Stakes going one mile, and another 11 3-year-old fillies were entered for Saturday’s Grade 3, $350,000 Jockey Club Oaks going 1 3/8 miles, though Macanga and Mixologist were entered in both and will run in Saturday’s Oaks, according to their trainers. Value Area was entered as main-track only for the Winter Memories, but there is no rain forecast.
With the rails on the outer turf set at 24 feet, only 10 will be permitted to run in the Winter Memories. With Macanga and Mixologist now pointing to the Oaks, Ready to Jam and Proctor Street – both coming off allowance wins – draw into the Winter Memories.
Trainer Christophe Clement, who has been on a bit of a roll the last three weeks winning stakes at Saratoga, Kentucky Downs, and Colonial Downs, sends out the French-bred Les Reys for the first time in the Winter Memories. Les Reys is coming off two wins at Longchamp, one in a handicap going 6 1/2 furlongs in which she passed 14 rivals in the stretch, the other the listed Prix Volterra Stakes going a mile on June 9, another race in which she rallied from well back.
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Clement had Les Reys pointed to the Grade 2 Lake Placid going 1 1/16 miles on Aug. 17 at Saratoga but had to pass the race when the filly developed an infection.
“I like her, her works have been exciting, and I’m excited to see her run,” said Clement, a two-time winner of this race. “A mile is probably a better distance. She’s trained well, and her form in France is good.”
Joel Rosario rides.
Trainer Chad Brown has had 16 individual females combine to win 22 turf stakes through the first eight months of 2024. Friday, he sends out Dynamic Pricing and Lady de Berry in search of his fourth victory in the Winter Memories.
Dynamic Pricing won the Grade 2 Edgewood at Churchill Downs before likely finding the 1 3/16 miles of the Belmont Oaks too far, finishing seventh. She was beaten three-quarters of a length by stablemate Grayosh in the Lake Placid.
Lady de Berry comes in off a third to stablemate Spaliday in the Boiling Springs at Monmouth Park in July. Brown is taking the blinkers off and reuniting Lady de Berry with Flavien Prat, who was aboard for the filly’s lone win.
Whiskey Decision won the Christiana Stakes at Delaware Park in July, then shipped west for the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks where she faded to sixth after making an early move to the lead. Trainer Arnaud Delacour is removing blinkers for the Winter Memories.
Poolside With Slim and Nice as Pie finished one-two in the Penn Oaks at Penn National in May.
Poolside With Slim had a wide trip when fourth in the Tepin Stakes on June 29 at Churchill. Trainer Rusty Arnold said he was hoping to run his filly in last weekend’s Music City Stakes at Kentucky Downs, but the filly was excluded from the oversubscribed race.
“This is where we landed,” said Arnold, who didn’t ship the filly to New York until Wednesday. “You hate that you have to travel so close to the race, but we wanted to make sure we got in.”
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Nice as Pie made a nice close to fall a head shy of Poolside With Slim in the Penn Oaks, her first time going this one-mile distance. This will be her first start since then.
Nice as Pie is trained by Kelsey Danner, who also entered Zo Lee in this spot. In addition to having Proctor Street, trainer Brendan Walsh entered Cloudwalker, third in the Coronation Cup sprinting last out. Vino Rouge and Ori remain on the also-eligible list.
The Winter Memories goes as race 9 on a 10-race card that begins at 1:05 p.m.
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