Delaware Park 2018 horses to watch: October 15
by Frank Vespe
Delaware Park has an eight-race card for Monday, October 15. Post time for the card is 1:15 p.m. Some horses to watch:
Race 4 – Maiden special weight
- Maidens three and up will go six furlongs on the main track.
- The horses with established form in this event aren’t anything special, but a couple of first-time starters here are worth a gander. #3 Not Sure (7-2) is a filly by Lonhro out of the A. P. Indy mare Possibility. She is a half to no fewer than six winners, though none of those is a stakes winner. The Alan Goldberg trainee does seem to be reaching her career debut — she’s three years old — in fits and starts, with a couple of recorded works last year and a couple more this spring before getting serious in September. Goldberg has a middling record with debut runners (12 percent) and will have Jevian Toledo up.
- Ashado was the champion three-year-old filly of 2004, the champion older mare of 2005, and entered racing’s Hall of Fame in 2014. As a broodmare, her record has been more modest, though it does include having birthed four winners, among them the stakes winner Westwood. #6 Alfresco (9-5) is the latest of her offspring to hit the track, and this sophomore Tapit filly will make her career debut in this spot. Trained by Mike Stidham, she’s been training forwardly towards this spot, including a couple of recent bullet works. Stidham can win with first-out runners — he’s 19 percent — and will leg up Brian Pedroza.
- Selections: 6-2-3
Race 6 – Allowance/optional claiming
- #2 Tale of Fire (5-2) has a curious past. The sophomore Tale of Ekati colt won at first asking to begin his career, that coming at Fort Erie in July 2017. He then made his next four starts in the UAE, including a try in the UAE 2000 Guineas Trial. Sold at auction earlier this year, he’ll make his first start for new connections today: namely, owner Monster Racing Stables and trainer Jorge Navarro. Navarro is 36 percent for the year and winning at a 40 percent clip in Delaware. This horse has been training well enough at Monmouth Park and will receive Lasix for the first time here; he’ll also race with blinkers on for the first time. Angel Suarez will ride.
- Selections: 2-6-3
ARABIAN WATCH
Arabian handicapping is provided by our friends at Arabian Finish Line.
No Arabian race today.