After an off-the-board finish in her first try at a route, Bruce Tallisman's Take Charge Paula will return to sprinting in the $150,000 Matron Stakes (G3) Oct. 15 at Belmont Park.
The six-furlong Matron has attracted a field of five juvenile fillies.
Trained by Kelly Breen, Take Charge Paula won at first asking when she posted a 4 1/4-length, front-running score in a five-furlong maiden race July 7 at Monmouth Park. The daughter of Take Charge Indy followed that effort with a three-length win in the White Clay Creek Stakes Aug. 9 at Delaware Park.
Take Charge Paula then attempted to stretch out in the 1 1/16-mile Pocahontas Stakes (G2) Sept. 16 at Churchill Downs. After tracking from third early, Take Charge Paula faded to 10th. She was bumped and steadied in that race.
Since that effort Take Charge Paula has registered a pair of works, including an impressive half-mile move Oct. 7 at Belmont, breezing in :46.78 which ranked second of 55 moves at the distance that day.
The short field also includes Merriebelle Stable, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, and Susan Magnier's Happy Like a Fool, a Distorted Humor filly who will return to dirt after a pair of overseas stakes starts on turf where she earned a group 2 placing.
Trained by Wesley Ward, Happy Like a Fool won her maiden debut in April at Keeneland, drawing off late to score by four lengths in the 4 1/2-furlong test. She then ran second in the Queen Mary Stakes (G2) at Royal Ascot before finishing off the board in the Sky Bet Lowther Stakes (G2) in August.
Since Sept. 16 Happy Like a Fool has breezed four times at Keeneland in preparation for her return to dirt racing.
Belmont Park, Sunday, October 15, 2017, Race 3Entries: Matron S. (G3)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Tarawa (KY) Dylan Davis 117 David P. Duggan 15/1 2 2Take Charge Paula (KY) Nik Juarez 119 Kelly J. Breen 3/1 3 3Happy Like a Fool (KY) Tyler Gaffalione 117 Wesley A. Ward 7/5 4 4Valuable Package (FL) Wilmer A. Garcia 117 Skip Einhorn 8/1 5 5Honey Graeme (FL) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 117 Richard A. Violette, Jr. 2/1
