Time and Motion should be up to challenge in Ballston Spa

Time and Motion, coming off back-to-back third-place finishes in graded stakes starts, should be up to the challenge of facing 4-5 favorite Lady Eli and the rest of a talented six-horse field in the Ballston Spa on Travers Day, trainer Jimmy Toner said.

Time and Motion drew post 3 and is 10-1 on the morning line. She will be in a field that will feature Lady Eli's last start at the Spa. Lady Eli will be offered at the Keeneland November breeding stock sale, just days after an expected start at the Breeders' Cup.

"We have our work cut out with Lady Eli," Toner said. "We'll see what we can go over there and try to get a piece of it. It's not easy. You have to work for what you get."

Hunter O'Riley will look to win a second straight graded stakes against an international field in the Grade 1 Sword Dancer. Drawing post 4, the winner of the Bowling Green last out is 6-1 on the morning line and was described by his trainer as a horse with a blue-collar sensibility.

"Anytime you see Aidan O'Brien's horse come in [2-1 favorite Idaho], you know it's no easy task," Toner said. "But 'Hunter' always tries. It doesn't matter who he runs against, he always shows up. Sometimes you get lucky enough, and like last time he got the job done. Regardless, he's very consistent. He's a lunch pail kind of a guy. He comes to do his job."

Toner said Defiant Honor is in fine fettle after her victory in Thursday's Riskaverse. The half-length win in the one-mile turf race could set up the 3-year-old Speightstown filly for a return to graded stakes company, though Toner said he hasn't decided on a spot yet.

Defiant Honor was making her first start since undergoing a myectomy to address the displacement of the soft palate. Toner said before the surgery, Defiant Honor's wind was effected, but the procedure, which required just a week of recovery time, didn't force her to miss any training.