The trainer Wesley Ward won his first Colleen Stakes in 2015 and won his seventh in 2024. Yes, you read that right.
Ward entered three in this year’s Colleen, a five-furlong grass dash for 2-year-old fillies renewed Sunday at Monmouth Park, but only Pulstar will show up with a chance to give Ward his eighth Colleen.
Unraced Santina and turf sprint maiden winner Clowning Around will land in other spots, Ward said. Victor Espinoza rides Pulstar, a life-and-death last out maiden winner at Saratoga.
To be fair, while Pulstar hung on to win by a nose July 12 at Saratoga following a narrow defeat in her June 7 debut at Churchill Downs, Ward entered the filly for grass and kept her in that maiden race after rain forced it onto a muddy main track. Pulstar went clear in upper stretch before losing late ground, holding on by a scant nose, but the filly stands a solid chance of improving on turf.
A Lael Stables homebred, Pulstar is by Kantharos, an above-average 14 percent with his turf-sprint offspring, and is the first foal out of Bellerue, a turf miler who won at the first allowance level.
Pulstar has shown speed in her two starts but probably can’t win the Colleen that way, given all the pace players entered. She did draw the far outside post, from which Espinoza can spy the other pace players while keeping his mount in the clear.
Nacho Problem went to the lead and notched a third-out restricted turf sprint maiden win going six furlongs at Aqueduct, and she’s probably not as quick as four other front-running maiden winners. Spinelli might be the fastest of them. Not only did she set a strong pace scoring a five-furlong debut win over Gulfstream’s Tapeta track, she broke like a rocket and opened daylight in a matter of strides.
Spinelli is by Upstart, a below-average sire of turf sprinters, but gets some grass from her dam’s side.
Thank You Amy, another filly quick into stride, Slick Merlin, and Gerrards Cross all won maiden races on the lead. Two off-the-pace options exist.
Rail-drawn Spectacular Grey’s 7 1/4-length debut win over Monmouth dirt was far more visually impressive than the 57 Beyer Speed Figure it produced. She stormed to the lead after racing last of nine in the early stages, appeared to win without breaking a sweat, and is bred top and bottom for this move to grass.
Golden Beach’s pedigree doesn’t matter. She has already showed she handles turf in her Monmouth debut on July 11. Golden Beach, trained by Mike Dini, broke all right but got squeezed by rivals inside and out at the start, winding up a distant last of six. She inhaled the leaders with a big move around the turn and into upper stretch, then spent the last furlong and a half looking toward the grandstand rather than running straight. She won anyway – and can score a rare Colleen victory for a trainer other than Wesley Ward.
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