Lady Rosberg upset the $35,000 Queen of the Green and Storm Power delivered as one of the favorites in the $35,000 Walter Cluer Memorial Saturday at Turf Paradise.
Queen of the Green Lady Rosberg ($18.00) surprised the crowd at 8-1, upsetting the Robertino Diodoro-trained, co-2-1 favorites Ricspretentiousgal and Rock and Glory in the field of eight fillies and mares. Ridden by Gallyn Mitchell for owner Karl Krieg and trainer Valorie Lund, Lady Rosberg covered the one mile over firm turf in 1:35.19. Walter Cluer Memorial Diodoro bounced back by winning the Water Cluer with Storm Power ($5.80). Fast Track was second with Red Zeus third in the field of eight 3-year-olds and up. Owned by Mercedes Stables, Storm Power, ridden by Geovanni Franco, covered the one mile turf test in 1:34.53.
Turf milers will be featured in the $35,000 Queen of the Green and $35,000 Walter Cluer Memorial Stakes Saturday as Turf Paradise kicks off its Thanksgiving weekend Holiday promotions. Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, will feature free Grandstand admission. Saturday Turf Paradise-styled sweatshirts will be given away to the first 4,000 fans. And Sunday re-welcomes the first $1 Day of the season, offering $1 Grandstand admission, Racing Programs, Hot Dogs, Sodas, popcorn and ice cream. Both the Queen of the Green, for fillies and mares and the Walter Cluer, for 3-year-olds and up, will be run at one mile on the grass course Queen of the Green A field of eight fillies and mares will line up in the Queen of the Green. In what has come up as a highly competitive race, a case can be made for each of the entrants off their best performance. Starting with the Dan McFarlane-trained Maker Or Breaker, who is a perfect two-for-two locally in dirt stakes, having won the Princess of Palms and Phoenix Stakes. The 5-year-old mare will be making her first start on grass. Being by Empire Maker by Unbridled, Maker Or Breaker should have no problems with the switch to a new surface. Rock and Glory, runner up to Maker Or Breaker, breaks from the one post, which suits her front-running style. The 6-year-old mare will also be making her turf debut. Rock and Glory’s breeding – Rock Hard Ten (Kris S.) – suggests she’ll relish the lawn. Ricspretentiousgal, winner of two of three local grass efforts, including the Glendale Handicap, and who like Rock and Glory is trained by Robertino Diodoro, returned to the races Oct. 19 with an Optional Claiming grass victory. An additional bonus: Leading trainer Diodoro teams up with leading rider Geovanni Franco. Walter Cluer Memorial Among the ten entered for the Walter Cluer, all eyes will be on the Diordoro-trained, multiple stakes winner Broadway Empire. Victorious in the Canadian and Oklahoma Derbies (G3) and sixth in the prestigious Metropolitan Mile (G1) after commadering the lead, Broadway Empire returns to Turf following a 9 ½ length romp in an Optional Claiming race April 12. An earner of over a half-million dollars. Broadway Empire will be making his grass debut. A worthy challenger is the Ardell Sayler-trained Balooga Bull, a multiple stakes winner in Canada, who has won 16 of 21 lifetime efforts by taking his competition wire-to-wire.
Anne von Rosen’s road to recovery is looking much better more than eight months after a spill that originally left her paralyzed below the waist. The Turf Paradise jockey was seriously hurt in March when a horse she was riding fell on the backstretch following a race at Turf Paradise. She has undergone several surgeries for spinal cord injuries and months of physical therapy.
OMAR IS TOP 'CABALLO' MAKER OR BREAKER BEST OF REST IN CITY OF PHOENIX
While Omar was a clear winner of the $35,000 Caballos del Sol Stakes, Maker or Breaker pulled away late in the stretch to win the $35,000 City of Phoenix Stakes Saturday at Turf Paradise. Reduced to a four-horse scamper due to scratches, the Roberto Diodoro trained Omar ($5.80), handled confidently by Scott Stevens, was an easy 3 ½ length winner of the Caballos del Sol Stakes, with Absolutely Cool second and Bull Dozer third another 1 ¼ lengths back. Owned by Randy Exellby, Omar raced the 6-furlongs in 1:08.97 for his seventh victory in 21 efforts. City of PhoenixThe 4-5 favorite Maker or Breaker ($3.60) pulled away from the begrudging Rock and Glory and Gracie Grace to win the City of Phoenix Stakes, the 5-year-old mare’s second consecutive stakes win. Double scratches reduced the field of fillies and mares to five.Owned by Patti and Hal Earnhardt, III, trained by Dan McFarlane and ridden by Israel Hernandez, Maker of Breaker covered the 6-furlongs in 1:09.72. for her sixth victory in 13 starts and earnings of $242,924. Sprinters, both colts and geldings and fillies and mares, will line up in the $35,000 Caballos del Sol Stakes and $35,000 City of Phoenix Stakes Saturday at Turf Paradise. Both stakes are for 3-year-olds and up and both will be run at 6-furlongs.
The Caballos del Sol, for colts and geldings, attracted a compact but highly competitive field of six. Four of the six entrants are stakes winners – Lotsa Mischief, Red Zeus, Absolutely Cool and Bull Dozer - and the other two are multiple race winners - Omar and Wine Stock. Two trainers have two separate entrants each – Robertino Diodoro and Dan McFarlane. Diodoro will send out Omar and Bull Dozer. Omar turned in a 5 ¾ length romp locally on Oct. 27 and Bull Dozer finished second as the favorite on Oct. 18th’s Bienvenido Stakes. McFarlane will counter with Lotsa Mischief, the lone 3-year-old in the field and winner of the Turf Paradise Derby; And Red Zeus, a versatile 4-year-old, with victories sprinting and routing. Not to be left out is Valorie Lund’s ultra-competitive Absolutely Cool, who has finished in the money in 17 of 19 local starts, including five victories. City of Phoenix Seven fillies and mares will line up in the City of Phoenix. Again, Diodoro and McFarlane, the two leading stakes winners last meet, are sending forth two separate entries each. Both of Diodoro’s entries figure prominently, with Rock and Glory, runner up in the Princess of Palms and Black Witch, victorious in an optional claiming event Oct. 29. However, the McFarlane trainee, Make or Breaker was impressive in winning the Princess of Palms. The 5-year-old mare transferred her southern California form with ease, signaling she’ll be a force to be reckoned with. McFarlane will also send forth Of Royalty, whose last win came in the Chandler Stakes, Nov. 16 of last year. Others of note are: The Arizona bred, multiple stakes winner Lady Jila and the Kevin Eikleberry-trained Quinichette, who will be making her Turf Paradise debut. |
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