The final week of the Saratoga meet kicks off Wednesday with a 10-race card highlighted by the GIII With Anticipation S. for juvenile turf colts. With the majority of the 10-horse field coming off maiden wins, horseplayers have a variety of ways to go in the betting.
Freshman sire City of Light could get his first black-type winner with Battle of Normandy in this event. The $500,000 FTSAUG buy captured his course-and-distance debut Aug. 6 by 2 1/4 lengths after a wide trip. His dam Adorable Miss (Kitten's Joy) was a two-time stakes winner on turf.
Our Dream Rye'd could pay fitting tribute to his recently deceased and legendary sire More Than Ready with a win Wednesday. After failing in his career bow sprinting on dirt at Churchill in June, the $210,000 OBSAPR purchase rallied from last to first when stretched to this distance on the Saratoga lawn July 30.
“He's an improving colt,” trainer Ian Wilkes said. “We had no grass at Churchill, so I just used the [debut] race to get a good education in him, get him running, get him started and get him moving. He came here and lived up to what I thought he could do in his last race. He's trained even better now for this next race and he's improved, but he's going to have to because you're running against winners now.”
Also stepping up off a first-out graduation going 1 1/16 miles at this oval is Lachaise (Oscar Performance), who bested fellow Empire0breds Aug. 4. The Larry Goichman homebred also represents a first-season sire seeking his first black-type score.
Oscar Performance is also represented by Andthe winner is, who gets back on turf here. Rallying to victory after a slow start in his turf sprint unveiling at Keeneland in April, the Wayne Catalano pupil tried dirt next out in Churchill's Bashford Manor S. July 4, finishing third behind next-out GII Saratoga Special S. runner-up Gulfport (Uncle Mo).
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