Heavenly Landing Sharp for Suwannee River
Summerplace Farm’s 5-year-old mare Heavenly Landing is hitting her best stride after winning allowance races at Keeneland and Churchill Downs in the fall and posting a 19-to-1 upset with a nose victory last out in the Marshua’s River Stakes (G3) over the Gulfstream Park turf course on Jan. 7.
Trained by Eddie Kenneally, Heavenly Landing will be a lot shorter price when she comes back in the $150,000 Suwannee River Stakes (G3) going 1 1/8 miles on turf Saturday in a field of 12 fillies and mares with regular jockey Corey Lanerie flying in from New Orleans for the mount.
A daughter of Pulpit, Heavenly Landing is now perfect in three starts on grass after showing some promise earlier in her career on the main track.
“She’s doing really well.” Kenneally said. “Her last race was her best.
She’s an improving filly and three-for-three on the grass.”
Heavenly Landing faces several highly-accomplished turf stakes veterans in the race including Ghislaine Head’s 6-year-old Denomination with Joe Bravo in the saddle for trainer Christophe Clement and Barbara Hunter’s 5-year-old Snow Top Mountain for trainer Tom Proctor and jockey Jose Lezcano.
Denomination will be a formidable contender on her best form, although she was somewhat of a disappointment last out finishing a close-up fourth as the odds-n favorite in the My Charmer Handicap (G3) at Calder on Nov. 24, although beaten less than a length for it all. The daughter of Smart Strike won the Violet Stakes (G3) at Monmouth Park and Athenia Stakes (G3) at Belmont Park in her two previous starts.
Snow Top Mountain ran a big race to finish third in the My Charmer ahead of Denomination and came back to lose a neck decision as the favorite in an allowance race at Tampa Downs on Jan. 9. The roan/gray homebred by Najran is very consistent with a 19-5-7-2 record, including a victory in the Kentucky Cup Ladies Turf at Kentucky Downs in September.
Completing the field for the Suwannee River are Two Bucks to Show LLC’s Cumulonimble, Tenreri Farms’ Thundering Emilia, Donald Adam’s Gold d’Oro, Stuart Janney III’s Hit It Rich, Trick or Treat International’s Here to Win, Farnsworth Stable’s Speak Easy Gal and James Lauffer and Poplar Hill Equine’s Persuading.
Farnsworth Stable’s Dash Dot Dash and Peter Fuller’s Trip for A.J. are entered to run ‘main track only’ in the Suwannee River.