New York Special squares off with undefeated Celtic Dawn in Thursday’s $200K Suzie O’Cain
Gary Barber’s New York Special, a half-sister to multiple Grade 1-winning multimillionaire Casa Creed, will take on undefeated stakes-winner Celtic Dawn when she makes her stakes debut in Thursday’s $200,000 Suzie O’Cain, a 1 1/16-mile inner turf test for New York-bred sophomore fillies, at Saratoga Race Course.
Trained by dual Hall of Famer Mark Casse, New York Special, by Curlin and out of the Bellamy Road mare Achalaya, is a sibling to Casa Creed, a New York fan favorite known as the ‘Mayor of Saratoga’ for his 9-5-0-2 record over seven seasons of racing at the Spa that included back-to-back scores in the Grade 1 Fourstardave Handicap in 2022-23.
"I just hope she can do half as much as he did. She's a filly that's gotten better and better. It's a bit of a jump in class, but we're going to give it a try,” Casse said.
The dark bay was purchased for $500,000 from the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale and landed second in her April debut sprinting seven furlongs versus state-bred maiden elderss over dirt at Aqueduct Racetrack.
New York Special followed with a game effort when stretched out to 1 1/16-miles over firm turf on June 7 during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga, posting a head score over Morning Prayer, who was elevated to victory next out. New York Special earned a 73 Beyer Speed Figure for her maiden score.
"I think she can do either surface. It wouldn't hurt our feelings if it came off. She's pretty good on both,” Casse said. “She showed some guts to win that race. She's better now than she was. She's getting better and better.”
New York Special has since worked steadily over the Saratoga main track, including a half-mile breeze in 48.77 seconds July 12.
“She’s training very well into this,” Casse said. “She's by Curlin and has huge value as a broodmare, so we thought if we could win some money with her, she'll make a great broodmare at some point.”
Edgard Zayas retains the mount from the inside post.
Blue Devil Racing Stable’s New York homebred Celtic Dawn [post 5, Irad Ortiz, Jr.] is 3-for-3 and enters from a prominent 2 1/2-length score over the David Donk-trained returning rival Encantar in her stakes and turf debut in the $150,000 Cupecoy’s Joy division of the New York Stallion Stakes Series, a six-furlong outer turf sprint for eligible New York-sired sophomore fillies, on June 13 at Belmont at the Big A.
Trainer Carlos Martin said he was impressed by the turf try from Celtic Dawn, which earned a field-best 80 Beyer. Irad Ortiz, Jr. will pick up the mount for the injured Hall of Famer Javier Castellano.
“I wasn't sure about the competition. I know David Donk thinks his filly is pretty nice and probably wants to go farther, but I thought it was a good race,” Martin said. “Castellano didn't seem like he was anxious at any point. When he asked her to accelerate, she took off. As a trainer, any time you get a 3-year-old filly first time on the grass to run in 1:08 and change [1:08.30] and the way she did it, you have a big smile on your face.
“She did everything very professional,” Martin added. “She was able to sit off the other horse [Miss Jane Hathaway]. I thought it was a great performance.”
The Honest Mischief gray made a winning debut sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs here in an August off-the-turf maiden. She subsequently received successful surgery for a fractured pastern in the left front at the nearby Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital and returned to action in May at Belmont at the Big A with a 1 1/4-length allowance score versus elders in a 6 1/2-furlong sprint while racing from an over eight-month layoff.
She trained into this event at Belmont Park where she worked five-eighths in 1:01.27 July 14.
“We left her there [at Belmont] deliberately because she's handled everything so beautifully there,” Martin said. “We shipped her to Saratoga on Wednesday so she could go through the last week of preparation here and go through the paddock and all that. We're excited about running her.”
Martin said that Celtic Dawn has been professional from Day One.
“She's always had a good mind. The first time out she came from seventh [early on] - I know it's different sprinting when they kind of ran away from her,” Martin said. “The part about stretching a horse out as a trainer is you want them to relax and finish, and she's always shown that. She's been an easy horse to train from that aspect. She does everything so professional and is a joy to have in the barn.”
Celtic Dawn is out of the Paddy O’Prado mare Tapa Liath, a two-time winner on turf for Blue Devil Racing Stable. Her third dam is dirt stakes winner Running Debate.
Martin said Celtic Dawn’s pedigree should prove formidable as Paddy O’Prado ran third in the 2010 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby and took down the 10-furlong Grade 1 Secretariat over good turf later that summer. In addition, Tapa Liath, was a dual turf winner for Marc Holliday’s Blue Devil Racing Stable, including a 1 1/16-mile turf route in April 2017 at Aqueduct.
“She gets a lot out of her gallops, but it's the pedigree that makes these horses go a distance. You can only get so much out of the training,” Martin said. “Paddy O'Prado was third in the Kentucky Derby for Dale Romans and the mother won at a distance for Marc Holliday. She was a hard-knocking mare and that gives me confidence on the pedigree side that she'll get the distance.”
Jump Sucker Stable’s homebred All of It [post 3, Manny Franco] brings a perfect 2-for-2 record to her stakes debut for trainer Miguel Clement.
The Mendelssohn dark bay has closed to dominant victories in each of her outings, scoring by 5 1/4-lengths on debut in April at the Big A and following last out with a 3 1/4-length win over returning rival Considerate City in a 1 1/16-mile state-bred allowance. The latter score earned a career-best 78 Beyer.
All of It is out of the dual stakes-winning Take Charge Indy mare Indy’s Lady – a half-sister to Senbei [24-8-2-1, $744,875], who captured the 2024 Grade 3 Belmont Turf Sprint for Miguel’s late father, Christophe Clement.
All of It has trained into her stakes debut at Saratoga, including a five-eighths breeze over the Oklahoma training turf in 1:01.65 on July 5.
Empire Equines’ homebred Encantar [post 4, Dylan Davis] graduated at third asking in her turf debut two starts back traveling 1 1/16-miles versus elder state-breds over firm turf on May 8 at Belmont at the Big A.
Trained by David Donk, the Solomini bay cut back sharply in distance last out for the Cupecoy’s Joy, tracking from third position and making a run down the lane to finish a 2 1/2-length second to Celtic Dawn.
Encantar made her first two starts in state-bred dirt sprints here last summer, including a late-running second over muddy and sealed footing in her July 31 debut.
Encantar is out of the Mineshaft mare Sandra’s Mine, a half-sister to the Donk-trained New York-bred dirt stakes-winner Water’s Edge. Her second dam is state-bred stakes-placed Sandra.
Also entered are stakes-placed Cosmic Candy Girl [post 7, Christopher Elliott] for trainer James Ryerson; maiden winners Considerate City [post 8, Tyler Gaffalione] for trainer Jimmy Ferraro and Neshika [post 6, Flavien Prat] for trainer Mike Maker; and the maiden Coach of the Year [post 2, Jose Lezcano] for trainer George Weaver. Lady Rose is entered for the main-track only.
The Suzie O’Cain is slated as Race 7 on Thursday’s nine-race program. First post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern.
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