Everso Mischievous tries graded company in Forty Niner

Stakes winner Everso Mischievous will make his first start in graded company in Saturday’s Grade 2, $300,000 Forty Niner, a one-mile test for 3-year-olds and up that previously was run as the Kelso, at Belmont at the Big A.

Trained by two-time Eclipse Award-winner Brad Cox, the sophomore son of Into Mischief was last seen winning the seven-furlong Harrods Creek on Sept. 23 at Churchill Downs, where he raced one length off the pace in second under Cristian Torres before taking command at the stretch call and drawing off to a 3 1/4-length victory in a final time of 1:22.15.

The win came in the bay’s stakes debut after a narrow allowance score in August at Saratoga by a neck over Cape Trafalgar. He has never finished worse than second in five lifetime outings and was a winner at second asking on May 6 at Churchill by 2 1/4 lengths over subsequent stakes winner Northern Invader.

Out of the graded stakes-winning Medaglia d’Oro mare Ever So Clever, Everso Mischievous initially sold for $600,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September yearling sale before selling for $85,000 at the 2022 Keeneland November horses of racing age sale.

Torres retains the mount from post 2.

Graded stakes-winning Maryland-bred Double Crown looks to defend his title in this event on the heels of a closing third-place effort in the Maryland Million Classic on Oct. 14 at Laurel Park. Trained by Ray Ginter Jr., the son of Bourbon Courage won the Polynesian against open company two starts back at Pimlico with a driving finish up the rail.

“He just got caught in the Maryland Million and he’s probably in the best form he’s been in,” said owner Lynn Cash of owner Built Wright Stables. “I think the lack of Lasix moves him forward compared to other horses. The Polynesian set up just right and the jock went up the rail.”

Double Crown scored in last year’s running of this event, then named the Kelso, with a tidy off-the-pace move in the stretch to defeat Baby Yoda by 1 3/4 lengths just one week after finishing fourth in the Maryland Million. This time around, Double Crown will have two weeks of rest heading into the Forty Niner, something Cash said suits the 6-year-old bay well.

“It’s two weeks’ rest this year instead of seven days last year, and he doesn’t run as well with a long rest, so this is really good,” said Cash. “It’s enough rest to freshen him. He’s a blue collar horse for sure. He just gets in there and gives you all he has.”

In addition to the Kelso and Polynesian, Double Crown boasts stakes victories in the Roar and Carry Back as a sophomore at Gulfstream Park and Grade 3 placings that season when third in the Smile Sprint at Gulfstream and second in the Chick Lang at Pimlico. He boasts field-best earnings of $753,685 through a record of 40: 8-9-5.

Jose Gomez will ride from post 1.