Hushion Well Represented in Big A Stakes
Trainer Mike Hushion will be well
represented during the first two days of Aqueduct Racetrack's
HolidayFest, with West Point Thoroughbreds' Sunrise Smarty
Sunrise Smarty enters the
six-furlong Fall Highweight off a sixth-place finish in the Frank J.
DeFrancis Memorial Dash Handicap at Laurel Park on October 22, one of
only two off-the-board finishes in 2011 for the 4-year-old son of Smarty
Jones.
"His last race was a little bit of a
disappointment," said Hushion. "He kept his head down and kept running
the whole way, which is all you can ask. He looks great, he's acting
great, his flesh is great, so why not?"
Second to Rule
by Night in the Duck Dance overnight stakes on October 9 at Belmont
Park, Sunrise Smarty's most recent victory was a half-length score in an
optional claimer at Saratoga Race Course on September 2.
At
the Big A, Sunrise Smarty is 1-1-1 from six starts, including a
five-length allowance victory last February, for which he earned a
lifetime best Beyer Speed Figure of 104. He subsequently finished sixth
after setting the pace in the Grade 1 Carter, beaten five lengths by
Morning Line.
"There was nothing wrong with his Carter - look at the competition," said Hushion, who has named Ramon Dominguez to ride.
Lovely
Lil enters the one-mile Go for Wand off a second-place finish as the
favorite behind Risky Rachel in the Friendly Island Iroquois at Belmont
Park on New York Showcase Day. The 4-year-old Tiznow filly is 2-1-1
since returning to action in July, having won the six-furlong Union
Avenue and an allowance at Saratoga Race Course and finished third in
the Grade 2 Foxwoods Gallant Bloom Handicap at Belmont on September 24.
"I
don't know if a mile is her best distance or not; you have to go back
to the race in Philadelphia," said Hushion of the Barry Schwartz
color-bearer, a game second last September at Parx Racing in her only
attempt at the distance. "In her last race [Iroquois] we had a little
bit of a duel with [Risky Rachel]. We gave her seven pounds. I would
have been more comfortable if she had been able to place herself a
little better. But, she was second-best."