Sands Point

TRACK BANDIT PREVIEWS

Eight sophomore fillies have been entered to go 1 1/8 miles over Belmont

Park's inner turf on Monday in the $150,000 Sands Point S. (G2), and the race is

shaping up to be a two-horse affair. CHECK THE LABEL (Stormin Fever) and

KHANCORD KID (Lemon Drop Kid) are the class of this group and the pair will be

battling from the start. We're going with Khancord Kid to subdue her rival and

take the win under regular rider Rajiv Marah.

Khancord Kid has captured three of her seven lifetime races, most recently

taking the Herecomesthebride S. (G3) by a half-length while going nine furlongs.

Trained by John Kimmel, the chestnut miss was given a two-month break following

that start and returned to be fifth while running on the main track. The

three-year-old filly had already proven in the past that the main track wasn't

to her liking, so her fifth in the Black-Eyed Susan S. (G2) is a complete

throw-out. Khancord Kid had Check Label back in fourth in the Herecomesthebride

and appears capable of holding off that rival once more.

Check the Label has finished worse than fourth only once in her 10-race

career. The Graham Motion trainee has shown steady progression throughout, just

making her graded debut two back in the Herecomesthebride and finishing a length

behind Khancord Kid. She returned in the one-mile Appalachian S. (G3) on April

15 and scored by three-quarters of a length, leading us to believe the bay lass

is more comfortable at eight furlongs. For that reason we're tabbing her for

second rather than the win despite her nice 95 BRIS Speed rating last out. Ramon

Dominguez will be in the saddle for the first time.

STRIKE IT RICH (Unbridled's Song) could offer an upset while making her turf

stakes bow in this spot. The Christophe Clement charge made her stakes debut in

the off-the-turf Sweetest Chant S. in January, but never offered any run while

finishing fifth and last on the sloppy, sealed Gulfstream dirt. She returned to

be a close third in an allowance back on the green, then was given a

mini-vacation and returned on April 25 to score by 2 1/4 lengths against turf

allowance rivals while going a mile. The gray filly earned a 95

Speed rating as well as a 105 BRIS E2 Pace figure, and could take the next step

forward here under Channing Hill.

NEGLIEE (Northern Afleet) was a dominant force on the Polytrack last year,

breaking her maiden at Woodbine before adding Keeneland's Alcibiades S. (G1) to

her line two races later. The John Terranova runner didn't do so well on the

Pro-Ride at Santa Anita in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1), bearing out

at the eighth-pole but rallying to be just 1 3/4 lengths back in sixth on the

line. The bay probably needed a race when running seventh in the April 3 Ashland

S. (G1) in her return off the five-month hiatus, and showed much more last out

while making her turf bow a half-length second in the Edgewood S. Unfortunately,

Negligee's numbers in her one grass start weren't all that impressive, so we

can't recommend for anything more than an exotics play at this point.

CRESCENDA (Bowman's Band) broke her maiden on Gulfstream's dirt while making

her career bow on January 7, but trainer Michael McDonald immediately switched

the miss to turf for her next start against allowance rivals. The chestnut

responded with a nice rallying second after being bumped at the start, and

returned off a near two-month break last out to successfully pass her

first-level allowance condition. That came on the turf, and Crescenda could

offer a nice run in the lane to grab part in this, her stakes debut.

Like Crescenda, HIT IT RICH (Smart Strike) has recorded two wins from only

three lifetime starts. However, the Shug McGaughey-conditioned gray will be

trying the turf for the first time in this spot, so we'll just watch to see how

she handles the transition. Both MORE IS BETTER (Unbridled Time) and ULTIMATE

CLASS (During) appear out of their class here.