Special Risk seeks first career victory in Spinaway

Narrowly beaten in a 5 ½-furlong maiden event on opening day, Michael Dubb, Head of Plains Partners LLC and The Elkstone Group's 2-year-old filly Special Risk returns to Saratoga seeking her first career victory in the Grade 1 Spinaway.

 

Trained by Rudy Rodriguez, the juvenile daughter of Grade 1 winner Eskendereya had been training at Belmont Park since her second start where she trailed by seven lengths entering the stretch but closed strongly to finish a half-length behind impressive front-running debut winner Bowie.

 

Special Risk was third in her unveiling May 18 at Belmont Park, a half-length out of second going five furlongs. Both races saw her sit off wickedly fast early fractions before making up ground late.

 

"We're just taking a chance. She looks like she wants to go the distance so that's going to be a plus, but the race is going to be tough," Rodriguez said. "We've just got to hope that she improves a little bit and is competitive. There's a couple horses in there that look like they're pretty fast, so hopefully they hook up and go 21 and 44 [seconds] and maybe we can sit behind and pick up some of the pieces."

 

Special Risk will break from post 2 in a field of seven under jockey Joel Rosario. They will carry low weight of 116 pounds, getting from two to six pounds from the rest of the group.

 

Rodriguez earned his first career Grade 1 victory in the 2014 Spinaway with Condo Commando, also partly owned by Dubb and Elkstone.

 

"I think Joel can give her a good ride. He's as good as anybody in the country," Rodriguez said. "She looks like she's coming into the race good, and the post is good. She drew on the inside and she doesn't have much speed. She's going to be sitting there and she doesn't have to take back so maybe she'll be a little closer than drawing on the outside and having to save ground. Hopefully we can pick up a check. If we win, I'm not going to get mad. She has to step up, definitely."

 

After consulting with Dubb Thursday morning, Rodriguez said he plans to run Everybodyluvsrudy in Monday's Grade 1, $350,000 Hopeful rather than Saturday's seventh-race maiden special weight event where the Union Rags colt is the second of four also-eligibles in a 14-horse field. Both races are run at seven furlongs.

 

"We put him in the Hopeful and maybe he's better off because you're going to run with five or six horses instead of running with 10," Rodriguez said. "He's very good. I'm very happy with the way he's training. He got a nice work yesterday on the main track. I was hoping to run him on Saturday and blow him up a little bit but we can run him Monday. He's very good. He's ready."

 

Rodriguez said Summer Revolution, fourth in the Grade 1 Ketel One King's Bishop August 27, is likely to make his next start in the Grade 1, $1 million Pennsylvania Derby September 24 at Parx.

 

"He came out of the race very good, so I'm going to take it easy with him," he said. "He looks very good, very happy. I thought he ran a good race considering the race he ran before was a huge race. We're going to take a look at the Pennsylvania Derby. I think he can stretch out. We're going to take each race as it comes and hopefully he'll run good over there."

 

In the King's Bishop, Summer Revolution contested a hot early pace set by front-running winner Drefong before being caught late by Economic Model and Noholdingback Bear, who were a half-length apart, the latter a neck in front of Summer Revolution.

 

"Right now I don't have any regrets about running him. He looks like he came back good; the only regret is that we didn't win the race," Rodriguez said. "The winner ran a big race. I don't think he embarrassed himself. He got a little tired. For a minute it looked like we were going to be second, but he ran good."

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Having won two previous editions of the Grade 1 Spinaway in 2001 with Cashier's Dream and 2009 with Hot Dixie Chick, newly minted Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen will look for his third winner in the race when he saddles 3-1 second choice Runway Doll for owners Bobby Flay and William and Connie Heiligbrodt.

 

Breaking her maiden in her first start on July 31 at Saratoga, the daughter of Majestic Warrior bested a field of eight over a sloppy track to win by 13 ½ lengths. Stepping into a Grade 1 off a single maiden victory is a big move, but Asmussen assistant Scott Blasi remains confident in the filly's ability.

 

"She came out of her race in good shape and she's trained solid since," said Blasi. "We thought a lot of her going into her first race, we weren't necessarily surprised by her performance but glad she ran the way she did."

 

Although Runway Doll flashed speed in going wire-to-wire, Blasi said he thinks the filly has more than one dimension.