Honorable Miss

TRACK BANDIT PREVIEWS

Eight female sprinters will square off in Friday's $150,000 Honorable Miss H.

(G2) at the Spa and the pace will be hot. MOLTO VITA (Carson City) will be part

of the early mix from her rail post and we'll give her the edge for top honors.

She's squared off against classy distaffers like Madcap Escapade all season but

didn't fire last time when fourth in the Princess Rooney H. (G2). We'll look for

the five-year-old to bounce back with a win under Javier Castellano.

Trained by Dallas Stewart, Molto Vita hasn't had any success yet at Saratoga

but did finish a close fourth, beaten 1 1/4 lengths, in last year's Ballerina H.

(G1). She earned a 104 BRIS Speed rating for that performance, and the bay mare

has displayed high-class form this season, finishing second by only three parts

of a length in the Humana Distaff H. (G1) in early May and delivering a powerful

performance to capture the Winning Colors S. at Churchill Downs two starts back,

setting splits of :21 3/5 and :44 4/5 before drawing off at the end. Versatile

enough to lead or rate, Molto Vita should be on the engine from the start and

prove difficult to reel in.

STORM MINSTREL (Storm Cat) enters on the upswing for conditioner Mark Hennig

and is a winner over the track. Jockey Edgar Prado will utilize stalk-and-pounce

tactics upon the improving four-year-old, and Storm Minstrel is an enticing 8-1

on the morning line. She looks dangerous in her graded debut.

BANK AUDIT (Wild Rush) will have a pace to run at and looms as a win threat

under jockey Ramon Dominguez. Winner of the Genuine Risk H. (G2) two back, the

Frank LaBoccetta trainee exits a second in the Vagrancy H. (G2) and relishes six

furlongs (10-4-3-2). The dark bay filly has earned triple-digit Speed ratings in

her last two starts and appears capable of a dangerous rally in this spot.

FOREST MUSIC (Unbridled's Song) will be winging it from the far outside under

John Velazquez and could last a long way on the front end. Now trained by Steve

Asmussen, the gray miss finished a decent third in last year's Test S. (G1) and

has been freshened for this appearance. We'll use her on the bottom of some

exotics.

UMPATEEDLE (Suave Prospect) closed from just off the pace to capture the

Light Hearted H. at Delaware Park last out and could offer a decent late showing

here at long odds. Trained by Mark Sherman, the six-year-old mare will be tested

for class, but she's never been better and deserves consideration for the

exotics. EBONY BREEZE (Belong to Me) is a multiple Grade 3 winner and has placed

in both previous starts at Saratoga. The Bill Mott trainee shipped to Philly

Park to record a stakes win in her last race, but the five-year-old mare has

been inconsistent this season. We wouldn't be surprised to see her challenge but

will just watch to see how she performs.

FORTRESS HILL (Forest Wildcat) just missed in her last two starts against

listed rivals and steps up to face tougher here. She's been most effective when

making the early lead and might face too much early pressure in her first

attempt at the graded level. HIGH PEAKS (Peaks and Valleys) is a two-time winner

at the Spa, but the New York-bred will be seriously tested for class in this

spot and probably won't be able to settle into a good trip on the front end.