Xtra Heat Headlines $125,000 Straight Deal at Laurel

Champion filly Xtra Heat headlines a five-horse field in Saturday's $125,000 Straight Deal Breeders' Cup at Laurel Park, her home track.

Winter Leaf, Outstanding Info, Skip The Print and Folly Dollar will try their luck against the superstar.

Xtra Heat has four victories in six starts this year, including the Barbara Fritchie Handicap (gr. II) at Laurel in February. She has finished in the money 27 times in 28 career starts with 21 wins (seven graded stakes) and has lifetime earnings of $1,903,305.

Trainer John Salzman is pointing Xtra Heat to the Breeders' Cup Sprint (gr. I) at Arlington Park in October. Last year, she ran a surprising second in the Breeders' Cup Sprint at Belmont while earning an Eclipse Award as top 3-year-old filly.

"She's been running hard all year," said Salzman. "The goal is to get her to the Breeders' Cup in good shape and this race helped us do that last year."

Last August, the sprinting sensation tied the Pimlico track record for six furlongs while winning this race.

This will be Xtra Heat's seventh race on the Laurel oval, the most of any track. She has five victories in six starts at four different distances. Her only loss was a gallant third versus the boys in the De Francis Dash (gr. I) last November.