Mystery Giver Leads List of Probables for Carey

Reigning Illinois Horse of the Year Mystery Giver headlines the list of probables for the 21st running of the Robert F. Carey Memorial Handicap on Saturday at Hawthorne. The grade III event carries a purse of $150,000 and will be run at one mile on the turf.

Mystery Giver leads the way as the Team Block-owned and Chris Block-trained gelding looks for his second victory of the year. On the board in four of eight starts in 2003, Mystery Giver's only victory came in the Fair Grounds Breeders' Cup Handicap on February 1. Recently he finished second in a conditioned allowance race at Keeneland on October 12. Mystery Giver is the listed highweight at 120 lbs.

The Carey will be Burning Roma's sixth start of the year, and all have been in stakes company. Posting the highest of earnings of those probable for the Carey at over $1.3 million, Burning Roma has made only two grass starts on the year, winning the Tampa Bay Breeders' Cup on February 15 and recently finishing second on the turf in the John Henry on Oct. 3. Owned by Harold Queen and trained by Heather Giglio, Burning Roma is the second highweight at 118 lbs.

Mc Mahon looks to be the pace of the Carey as he's hoping to repeat his last effort at this mile distance. In only his second turf start, the Cherrywood Racing Stables-owned and Michele Boyce-trained 5-year-old set all of the fractions in winning the Crafty Drone here on October 12. The Carey will be Mc Mahon's first graded stakes event on the grass as he is listed to carry 115 lbs. Below are the probables for the Carey in order of weight:

Mystery Giver 120
Burning Roma 118
Act Of War 115
Al's Dearly Bred 115
Mc Mahon 115
Naraingang (Brz) 115
Generals Sword 113
Great Bloom 113
Moonshine Hall 112
Beau Classic 111