Clement has a trio of horses to consider for the grade II, $250,000 New York Handicap for fillies and mares at a mile and a quarter July 4th and the grade III, $200,000 All Along Breeders' Cup at Colonial Downs July 12th. Mariensky, who worked in :52 1/5 Tuesday, Dress to Thrill and Sixty Seconds will be split up somehow between the two races. Mariensky won back-to-back races in seven days earlier this meet capturing the Sheepshead Bay at a mile and three-eighths, then cutting back to a mile for the Just A Game Breeders' Cup over soggy courses. Dress to Thrill, winner of the grade I Matriarch at Hollywood last fall, has only run once since then. Returning off a long layoff, she was fifth in the May 26th Gamely Breeders' Cup Handicap at Hollywood. Sixty Seconds is a newcomer to the Clement barn. The New Zealand-bred won the group I Arrowfield Stud at Rosehill, Australia, in the spring of 2002. She has not raced since last fall. Sixty Seconds breezed four furlongs over the "good" inner turf course this morning in :48. "It was a very good work this morning," Clement said. "She came to us in December. She's been running in some nice stakes races `Down Under.'" Saturday's featured race will be the grade I, $300,000 Mother Goose, the nine-furlong first leg of the revised "Triple Tiara" for three-year-old fillies. Any filly that can sweep the Mother Goose; Belmont's grade I, $500,000 Coaching Club American Oaks at a mile and a half on Saturday, July 19th; and Saratoga's grade I, $750,000 Alabama at a mile and a quarter on Saturday, August 16th will earn a $2 million bonus. The Mother Goose, which will be the final race of a live nine-race card (5:12 p.m. Eastern), is the first leg of the NTRA Summer Pick 3. The $1 minimum wager requires a bettor to pick the winners of the Mother Goose, the Arlington Classic (gr. IIT, 5:27 p.m.) and Monmouth's Molly Pitcher Breeders' Cup Handicap (gr. II, 5:44 p.m)
Edited from Belmont Park releaseGulfstream Park Handicap winner Hero's Tribute breezed five furlongs in 1:01 1/5 Wednesday morning at Belmont Park. The five-year-old son of Sea Hero will be considered for the grade 1, $500,000 Suburban Handicap on July 5th. "He worked very well," said Donna Ward, trainer John Ward Jr.'s wife and assistant. "Right now, we're pointing to the Suburban. There might be an allowance race here towards the end of the meet, but he'd have to cut back to a mile for that." Ward said she was pleased with how Sky Mesa came out of a five furlongs work Tuesday in :59 handily. The colt won last year's Hopeful and Lane's End Breeders' Futurity en route to a perfect 3-for-3 juvenile season. He has not yet raced in 2003. "He trained good and came out of it good," Ward said. "He didn't get overly tired yesterday, but I wanted him to get a little bit tired. I think he's stronger than last year. He's very mature and settled in. He knows what's going on." Sky Mesa is likely to make his seasonal debut in the Dwyer, but there is the possibility of him appearing in an allowance race. "We'll probably run in the Dwyer," Ward said. "With a stakes, you know it's going to go. There will be some experienced horses in there. You can't count on any of the allowance preps to go. If he did run in allowance, he'd probably have to run against older horses." Aventura and Lone Star Derby winner Dynever breezed five furlongs in an easy :50 3/5 this morning. It was the colt's first workout since he was beaten 10 1/4 lengths by Empire Maker while finishing fourth in the Belmont Stakes. "I was happy with the work," trainer Christophe Clement said. "I will work him back either Monday or Tuesday. As long as he works well next week, he'll go to the Dwyer."