7/23-24 (SAR): CCA Oaks (G1); Caress

[Kasept]

[Kasept]

[RHT2004]

Originally Posted by Kasept

Elates coming out party. Exciting times.

[RolloTomasi]

Originally Posted by RHT2004

Elates coming out party. Exciting times.

That sure was a cute little stakes she won at Delaware over 3 other horses.

Two of them came back to win. Analyze, who ran last, came back to win a first-condition allowance in desperate fashion at 3-5. Teresa Z shipped over to face the monsters that line up for non-winners once allowances at Penn National and romped.

Of course, the only horse from the Light Hearted (apropos name) to actually face stakes horses next out, Modacious, came back to run...you guessed it...dead last in the Grade 3 Delaware Oaks.

Ironically enough, the winner of that race, It Tiz Well--an understudy of Unique Bella--defeated elate by 5 lengths in the Honey Bee at Oaklawn. It Tiz Well beat Modacious by over 8 lengths. On strict form, that should have been good enough for Elate to finish second-to-last in the Delware Oaks.

It's not all bad news though, Elate couldn't possibly run any worse in this Grade 1 than she did in her only other Grade 1 start (DNF, vanned off).

[RHT2004]

Originally Posted by RolloTomasi

That sure was a cute little stakes she won at Delaware over 3 other horses.

Two of them came back to win. Analyze, who ran last, came back to win a first-condition allowance in desperate fashion at 3-5. Teresa Z shipped over to face the monsters that line up for non-winners once allowances at Penn National and romped.

Of course, the only horse from the Light Hearted (apropos name) to actually face stakes horses next out, Modacious, came back to run...you guessed it...dead last in the Grade 3 Delaware Oaks.

Ironically enough, the winner of that race, It Tiz Well--an understudy of Unique Bella--defeated elate by 5 lengths in the Honey Bee at Oaklawn. It Tiz Well beat Modacious by over 8 lengths. On strict form, that should have been good enough for Elate to finish second-to-last in the Delware Oaks.

It's not all bad news though, Elate couldn't possibly run any worse in this Grade 1 than she did in her only other Grade 1 start (DNF, vanned off).

You are 2 sharp to totally disregard her like this.

[RHT2004]

I think she wires this field. No way Jose is not out dictating terms with this draw.

[RolloTomasi]

Originally Posted by RHT2004

I think she wires this field. No way Jose is not out dictating terms with this draw.

If all 3 stay in, my guess is Casse will send either Corporate Queen or Summer Luck to the front. Salty likes to make sustained runs down the backstretch, so even if she taxes herself in the stretch, she still is unlikely to let Elate get away on the turn.

Abel Tasman has displayed push-button form in a couple of races (Acorn, Santa Ysabel) this year. My guess is Smith will simply sit loaded throughout and then blow them away on the turn. She's not beholden to the pace.

All that aside, Elate hardly possesses sharp early speed to begin with. She may make the front end, but there's no guarantee she can dictate terms if she is challenged early.