Colonial Flag, Somali Lemonade Arrive at CD
Colonial
Flag and Somali
Lemonade arrived at Churchill Downs from their base at Fair Hill in
Maryland early Thursday morning and will give trainer Michael Matz two
shots in Saturday night’s $175,000-added Mrs. Revere (Grade II).
Skara
Glen Stables, Will
Farish and George Prussin’s Colonial Flag is coming off a
fifth-place finish behind Angel Terrace in a division of the Valley View
(GIII) at Keeneland.
“We
changed jockeys for the last race and Shaun Bridgmohan said he had a
rough trip and he was in good position and then got shuffled back,” Matz said.
“She made a run and got beat 4 ¾ lengths.
“She’s
had a good year. I don’t know what happened in California (last of eight in GI
American Oaks). She got bumped coming into the stretch and she kind of lost
everything on the turn, but she was going very good there. She had a nice year
and she’s quite a big filly and I think the maturity will help her as an older
horse.”
Prior
to the Valley View, Colonial Flag won the Ontario Colleen (GIII) at Woodbine.
Caroline
Forgason’s Somali
Lemonade most recently finished fifth in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup
(GI) at Keeneland. Prior to that race, she was second by a head to Samitar-GB
in the Garden City (GI) at Belmont Park.
“She’s
kind of had a tough year,” Matz said. “She’s been close, but just hasn’t gotten
there. She was just beaten a head in the Garden City, but there was some speed
in there. There’s not that much speed (in the Mrs. Revere). Everyone sort of
has the same style. It is what it is. There’s not much we can do about it. It’s
kind of what has plagued us all year, but she’s been a nice filly for us all
year.”
Matz
said the Mrs. Revere would be the final start in 2012 for both Colonial Flag
and Somali Lemonade. The two 3-year-old fillies will be given the winter off
and then be prepped for a return in the spring.
“We
tried to keep them separated this year and we’ll try to do that again next year,”
Matz said.
The Mrs. Revere will be co-featured on Saturday night’s Downs After Dark racing program with the Commonwealth Turf (GIII). The 1/16-mile Mrs. Revere is scheduled to go as Race 9 at 8:36 p.m. ET.