Coach David Donk will make a solid 1-2 punch with Thin white duke and Yes and Yes in a deep yard for $200,000 Belmont Turf Sprint (G3T) at six o’clock on October 1 on the outside turf at Belmont at the Big A fall meeting.
The seventh run of the Belmont Turf Sprint for kids ages 3 and up is scheduled to be the ninth race on a stack of cards consisting of Woodward Stakes (G1), $500,000 Champagne Stakes (G1) G1) and Miss Grillo Stakes (G2T).
Thin White Duke, bred and co-owned by former trainer Phil Gleaves with Steven Crist, Ken deRegt, and Bryan Hilliard, narrowly won 5 1/2 Long Lucky Coin Stakes on September 2 during the launch his last broadcast at Racecourse Saratoga after a third closed in Troy Staking (G3T) started earlier.
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Donk said adding a half-long hair on Saturday could benefit Thin White Duke, a pampered 4-year-old son of Dominus who caught a 1/16 mile state bred option claimant in April in his only game that started at Aqueduct race track.
“It shouldn’t have hurt him,” Donk said. “He passed the OK track here in the spring. It was a two-legged race but he felt good on the grass. Duke ran very well in Saratoga in his last pairing to start running. sprint. He seems to be doing well and that’s right for him.”
The original Gleaves, who has been out of work since late last year, creates versatile gelding. Under Gleaves’ guidance, he scored the main track sprint scores as a minor in the Funny Cide Stakes at Saratoga and the Aspirant Stakes at Finger Lake.
Thin White Duke has focused on grass racing in 7/8 starts for Donk, going as far as 1 1/8 mile when fourth in incline allowables open in June in Belmont. Donk said the team chose to focus on sprinting into the Saratoga meetup.
“We tried five and a half minutes, and he did a great job,” said Donk. “It looks like it could be his niche.”
Deposits Sidney’s Candy gelding Yes and Yes, also bred by Gleaves and co-owned by Joseph Straus, Jr. and Hugh Fitzsimons, finished fifth in Troy before the next trip Colony Downs he was eventually elevated to second in 5 1/2 long Da Hoss Stakes.
The 6-year-old Kentucky boy boasts a 25-5-5-4 record with a purse win of $355,680. He also joined Donk’s stable from Gleaves for his current campaign, posting a streak of three wins in Belmont sprints to start the season.
“Six to 7/8 suits him best. It will be interesting to bring him here and see if he can excel on this course,” said Donk.
Thin White Duke will exit track 7 under Jose Ortiz while Yes and Yes will appear from track 5 under Dylan Davis.
Pantofel Stable, Wachtel Stable and Jerry Zaro’s Gum (post 11, Jose Lezcano) returns to Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational for the third year in a row after finishing second first Wet your whistle in 2020 and Tuesday last year to Catch me red .
Coached by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, award-winning 7-year-old boy Candy Ride The bay failed to fire during his most recent visit to the Kentucky Downs.
Chewing Gum who came in second after the stable member Casa Creed during last year’s Jaipur Stakes (G1T) Jackpot in Belmont, there was a 4-4-8 in 25 ledger starting with a wallet income of $608,563.
Arzak , nothing better , Voodoo Zip , Value proposition , Dancing Buck and Scuttlebuzz are other threats in a controversial area.
Item: Belmont Turf Sprint S. (G3T)
Belmont at Big ASaturday, October 1, 2022, Race No. 9
- Level III
- 6f
- Lawn outside
- 200,000 dollars
- 3 years or more
- 5:13 pm (local)
This press release has been edited for content and style by the BloodHorse Staff.
