I'm Already Sexy headed to QEII; Every Way eyeing Valley View

I'm Already Sexy headed to QEII; Every Way eyeing Valley

View

I'm Already Sexy put on a pace and class clinic Saturday at Arlington when wiring the

Grade 3 Pucker Up as the

favorite under a sharp ride by Florent Geroux for leading trainer Wayne

Catalano.

The win topped a huge day for the 10-time Arlington champion conditioner, who also won one other race on the Arlington

card and four at Kentucky Downs, including two stakes. It was Catalano's second

win in the race, the first being with Dreaming of Anna in 2007.

"It was a great day -- I'm really happy," Catalano said. "She came out good. We are taking her home to the (hyperbaric) chamber, now."

This is the same treatment that proved effective when the Ready's Image filly ran a big race

on Arlington Million Day in the first division of the Hatoof, winning by

open lengths.

"The chamber helps get the bounce out of them; refreshes them," Catalano

added.

Like preceding Pucker Up winners, I'm Already Sexy is

now aiming for the Grade 1, $400,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup at Keeneland

on October 12.

"Hopefully we'll get into that race and she'll keep

improving," Catalano said.

Three of the last nine winners of the Queen Elizabeth were Pucker Up scorers

-- Ticker Tape (2004), Vacare (2006) and Hot Cha Cha

(2009).

Catalano's two stakes wins at Kentucky Downs were both with

Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey-owned offspring of Kitten's Joy -- the exciting

two-year-old filly Lien on Kitten in the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Fillies

and older horse Coalport in the Franklin-Simpson Mile. While Catalano

is unsure where the latter will end up next, he has high hopes for Lien on

Kitten.

"She's hopefully going to be our Breeders' Cup filly. I'll talk to Mr.

Ramsey," the conditioner reported. "Coalport looked good. He has overcome his

little issues and had a good year."

Catalano added yet another

notch in his lengthy belt of Arlington accomplishments when he eclipsed the

$2-million mark in seasonal earnings on Saturday ($2,002,952). I'm Already

Sexy's Pucker Up score highlighted the day, which saw the conditioner

push past previous record holder Chris Block's mark of $1,921,998 from 2012.

The record does not take into account Breeders' Cup earnings from 2002 when it

was held at Arlington.

Catalano is currently on track to possibly break his own

record (75) for single wins in a season. As of Saturday, he has 68 victories

with nine race days remaining.

Trainer Mike Stidham had a tough day of good second-place finishes in stakes

both at Arlington and Kentucky Downs on Saturday. Every Way outran her 10-1 odds to fall short to loose-on-the-lead

favorite I'm Already Sexy in the Pucker Up, while Trend finished second in a tight photo for the third consecutive race when

losing by a nose to Coalport in the Franklin-Simpson Mile at Kentucky

Downs.

"Every Way looks good today. She came out well. She tracked

that horse around there and I think if we would have tried to pressure her, we

may not have finished as well as we did. (I'm Already Sexy) just didn't back

up," Stidham reported.

"We'll probably point toward the (Grade 3, $150,000) Valley View (on October 18) at Keeneland. That's a more realistic race than the Queen Elizabeth.

"She's a filly who broke her maiden first time out and

we've always liked her. She's always been an honest filly with a great attitude

who tries hard. Since we gave her a break after the Ashland in April, she has

come back really good," Stidham continued.

Trend, on the other hand, has been victim to tough-luck

finishes. On July 27, the Sligo Bay gelding ran into Grade 2 victor Nates Mineshaft

in a tough allowance race and just missed beating that ridgling by a head. On

August 17, Arlington Million Day, he was nabbed right at the line by Coalport in

another Arlington allowance -- much the same as it happened in the

Franklin-Simpson.

"The only step he wasn't in front was right at the wire," Stidham noted. "The same horse beat us

-- it's frustrating but it's nice that he's

running well -- he's firing bullets every time. We'll look at a three-other-than

at Keeneland. His owners love to see him run there. We'll also look at another

small stakes for him."

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