Keeneland Daily Notebook

KEENELAND DAILY NOTEBOOK

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2007

by Brian P. Turner

A field of 11 went to the gate for Wednesday's 8TH race, an

allowance/optional claiming event for three-year-olds and up going seven

furlongs on the Polytrack. This appeared to be a wide open event and it proved

to be just that in the end as long shot FIVE STAR THIEF (Cat Thief) pulled off

an absolute shocker. The chestnut broke well from the gate and stalked the pace

early through opening fractions of :23 3/5 and :46 2/5 before moving up to vie

for the lead in the stretch drive. The four-year-old gelding gradually wrestled

away the lead and widened his advantage late to hit the finish line 1 1/4

lengths clear of the field, lighting up the tote board with a $105.20 payoff,

which is the biggest price of the meet thus far.

Five Star Thief was virtually ignored by the betting public as he was exiting

a pair of third-place finishes against straight claiming company at Presque Isle

Downs. While he is definitely a hard-knocking competitor, he appeared to be

overmatched against the best of this field but proved the great majority of the

betting public wrong with a very impressive performance here.

Big Rushlet (Wild Rush), who was coming off a second-place effort against

allowance company at Arlington, rallied from off the pace and finished well late

to hit the finish line in second, a neck in front of Japengo (Theatrical [Ire])

in third.

There were a total of four sprints contested over the Polytrack Wednesday

with horses on or near the pace winning all of them. As for the three routes,

horses on or near the pace won two of those as well. In addition, there were two

turf routes contested on the day with horses closing from off the pace winning

both of them.

Julien Leparoux added three to his total today and still leads the way in the

jockey standings with eight for the meet. Rafael Bejarano booted home two

winners on the day and now has sole possession of the second spot with five.

Four jockeys, including Jamie Theriot and Shaun Bridgmohan, are tied for the

third spot with three.

Bill Mott was unable to add to his total today but still sits atop the

trainer standings with four for the meet. Christophe Clement didn't send out any

runners today but remains in second with three. Steve Asmussen saddled a winner

today which moves him into a tie for the third spot with Todd Pletcher and

Philip Sims. The trio has two winners each.

Horses to Watch

4TH - JUST FOR KEEPS (Broken Vow) reeled off her second win in a row since

moving to the synthetic track and into the barn of trainer Steve Asmussen. The

three-year-old filly was coming off a wire-to-wire victory at Presque Isle Downs

in which she easily handled a field of allowance horses by five lengths. The bay

returned here against $50,000 claimers and was equally impressive as she guided

the way through opening fractions of :23 and :46 2/5 before cruising to the wire

for an easy 2 1/2-length victory under little more than a hand ride.

5TH - PURE CLAN (Pure Prize) broke her maiden on the grass last out in her

career debut at Ellis Park in an extremely impressive performance as she easily

disposed of the competition by 7 3/4 lengths. The two-year-old filly was even

more impressive here in this eight-furlong turf allowance event. The chestnut

was content to lay off the pace early through opening fractions of :24 3/5 and

:49 2/5 then was forced to wait for room in the stretch drive. Once she found a

way through, Pure Clan unleashed a visually impressive turn of foot and quickly

engulfed the field on her way to a 2 1/2 length victory. This filly could prove

to be any sort.

Tomorrow's Outlook - Thursday, October 11

Thursday's featured stakes offering is the Jessamine S. for two-year-old

fillies going 1 1/16 miles on the lawn. Several in this field appear to have a

legitimate shot of making it into the winner's circle so insist on value before

plunging too deep. MINE OR WHO'S (Mayakovsky) will be returning to the grass

after a dismal performance against fellow New York-breds in a listed stakes race

at Belmont in which she finished fifth, beaten by 10 1/4 lengths. Prior to that

effort though, the dark bay rallied from 11 lengths off the early pace and

closed with a determined turn of foot late to gamely break her maiden by a head

on the green.

Trainer Bill Mott has been red hot for the meet thus far and the fact that

jockey Kent Desormeaux is scheduled to take the mount definitely adds to her

appeal.

LICKETY LEMON (Lemon Drop Kid) will be invading Keeneland from Canada, where

she is exiting a third-place finish in the Natalma S. (Can-G3) in which she

stalked the pace early before dropping back and then re-rallying late. The bay

was sent off as the favorite by the betting public in that event as she had been

a perfect two-for-two on the lawn in her two prior starts. Lickety Lemon has an

ideal pedigree for the distance and appears to be the one most capable of

bringing home the victory should the top choice falter. EXCESSIVE HEAT (Bring

the Heat) has reeled off two wins in a row since moving to the grass and both of

those came against stakes company. The gray puts in her best performances on the

lead and could prove hard to run down late if allowed to dictate the pace

early. The one concern regarding the filly would be her ability to handle the

distance as she has been sprinting up to this point and her pedigree is a bit

questionable when it comes to handling a route.

PRETTY PERSUASION (Cape Town) is an interesting play for those looking for

value. The dark bay is exiting a troubled seventh-place effort in the Arlington-Washington Lassie S. (G3) in which she was unable to find a way through in the

stretch drive. Prior to that effort though, she broke her maiden impressively on

the grass by 2 1/4 lengths in her career debut.

Thursday's forecast calls for a chance of showers with highs in the mid-60s.

Thursday's Best Plays

2ND - HOT SUNRISE (El Corredor) is exiting a sixth-place effort in which he

was beaten by three lengths on the lawn at Belmont, but his recent BRIS Speed

ratings definitely put him in the thick of things in this 6 1/2-furlong

allowance event on the main track. The four-year-old gelding has run well here

on the Polytrack in the past, including a 4 1/4-length maiden score here

last fall and a third-place effort against similar to what he faces today. The

dark bay tops the field in BRIS Prime Power and his BRIS Class rating is near

the top of the field. Hot Sunrise stands a solid chance here at what should be a

fair price.

7TH - ISLAND WARRIOR (Cherokee Run) compiled a record of 4-3-1 over the

first eight starts of his career, including a second-place effort in last year's Kentucky Cup Sprint S. (G3) where he was beaten by only a half-length. The dark

bay's first off-the-board finish came at Fair Grounds back in March where he

finished fifth, beaten by 6 1/4 lengths. This prompted a long vacation from

which the four-year-old colt returns today. Given some of the competition he

faces in this one, Island Warrior could offer a bit of value and stands a solid chance

if he is ready to roll after the layoff.