Bonapaw will try a trip he hasn’t taken in nearly two years in the $100,000 Grade III Hanshin Cup on Saturday at Arlington Park.
The sprinter will make his first start at a distance since August 2000. Based on his limited record in route races, the 121-pound highweight is vulnerable as the lukewarm 3-1 program favorite for the 1-mile feature.
The Louisiana-based 6-year-old is a sprinting star, with 13 victories in 25 starts at 6 1/2 furlongs or less, including his only graded victory in the 6-furlong, Grade III Count Fleet at Oaklawn Park last year. In contrast, Bonapaw’s main-track distance record is suspect. He has only two seconds to show for four tries. The Norman Miller trainee could find an edge in the Hanshin’s one-turn mile distance, which he may use to carry his speed.
Challenger Hero’s Tribute will try to regain the form that put him on the Triple Crown trail last year. The 2001 Peter Pan winner ships in off an allowance victory at Churchill Downs on June 2. Both of Discreet Hero’s 2001 victories were over the Arlington strip, including the Grade III Round Table. He is unraced since an unsuccessful West Coast foray ended in March.
Irish tune: A visitor from Ireland may continue Europe’s recent successes in Arlington’s oldest stakes race, the $225,000 Grade II American Derby on Sunday. Four of the last seven winners have come from overseas. Jazz Beat invades after an eighth-place finish in the Group I Irish Derby at The Curragh on June 30.
The sophomore hails from the winningest stable in Irish-racing history. Trainer Dermot Weld will try to win the American Derby for a second time. He won in an upset with Pine Dance in 2000. Jazz Beat ranks as the 4-1 third choice on the morning line for the 1 3/16-mile turf race.
Seainsky tops the program at 5-2. In his first stakes start, he ran third at 56-1 in the Grade II Arlington Classic on June 29. Other top contenders include Wallace Dollase’s Mananan McLir (9-2) and Cappuchino (7-2) from the Jerry Hollendorfer stable.
Hot harness: Mini Me will try to duplicate his 2001 form when he returns to Balmoral Park Saturday for the American National eliminations. As a 2-year-old the Roger Welch trainee won 10-of-12 races and set a world record in Crete en route to Illinois Horse of the Year honors.
This year Mini Me has kept a top-class schedule that, along with breaking problems, has limited him to one victory in 10 starts. He is the 7-5 choice in the third division.
Canadian trainer Bill Robinson sent two hopefuls: first elimination 6-5 favorite Red River Hanover, formerly the continent’s top-ranked standardbred this year, and middle elimination second choice Brad’s Gold. Randall Waples, named Canada’s top driver last year, will drive. Multiple 2001 Balmoral winner Three Olives tops the second elimination at 8-5. The $250,000 final for 3-year-old pacers is July 27.
