Laurel’s rescheduled De Francis Dash Day card featured seven stakes, the finale of the Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championship series, big fields and plenty of quality racing. Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens came in from California to ride several, while trainers Steve Asmussen, Tom Albertrani, Roger Attfield, Christophe Clement, David Donk, Jeremiah Englehart and others entered horses. The results included a 35-percent increase in handle over the same card in 2017 – to more than $5 million.
Among the newsmakers…
• Switzerland dazzled in the De Francis, a Grade 3 sprint stakes run in memory of former Maryland Jockey Club owner Frank De Francis. Shipped in from New York by Asmussen for Woodford Racing, the 4-year-old Speightstown colt blitzed seven rivals while improving to 5-for-6 this year.
A $500,000 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-year-old sale graduate, Switzerland started his career with trainer Chad Brown – and seven consecutive losses. The skid finally ended on a sloppy track at Aqueduct in February, with the victory earning the dark bay colt some new scenery. Woodford sent Switzerland to Asmussen’s string at Oaklawn Park, and received immediate results with allowance wins in March and April. Sent to Pimlico in May, Switzerland splashed home in the Maryland Sprint on Preakness Day to become a graded stakes winner.
Sent out against division leader Imperial Hint in the Grade 1 Alfred Vanderbilt at Saratoga, Switzerland broke a step slow from the inside post, rushed up to the lead through fast fractions and faded to fifth.
Asmussen made sure jockey Fergal Lynch knew that scenario before the De Francis.
“Steve said, ‘Look, if he misses the break like he did at Saratoga I don’t want to see you rushing him up there,’ ” Lynch said.
Of course, Colonel Sharp broke running and Lynch briefly pondered his next move.
Briefly. Without working too hard, Switzerland matched strides with Colonel Sharp after a furlong and was in front by a head through a first quarter in :22.83.
“He took me up in there and I was able to control the race,” said Lynch. “I was always comfortable from there. It took him awhile to switch leads, but he did switch at the sixteenth pole and he accelerated again.”
The winner covered 6 furlongs in 1:09.11 and defeated Laki by 2 3/4 lengths with Sweetontheleadies third.
Lynch won three stakes on the day, as he opened with wins in the Laurel Futurity with Order And Law for trainer Louis Linder Jr. and the Laurel Dash with Class And Cash for Jane Cibelli.
• Switzerland prepped for Laurel at Saratoga, as did Laurel Turf Cup winner Hello Don Julio for owner/trainer Michael Dilger. The 6-year-old Afleet Alex gelding traded punches with Final Copy early, kicked off the turn and helod on to win by three-quarters of a length over 115-1 shot Cooptado with Postulation third.
The turf marathon was a war as the leaders banged out three quarter-mile fractions of :25 and change to start. Final Copy led by a head after a mile in 1:43.30 and 1 1/4 miles in 2:09.24, but soon cracked to Hello Don Julio’s relentless gallop. The winner went up by 2 lengths in mid-stretch, and galloped out like he might have gone around again.
Jockey Channing Hill could barely explain it afterward as he told the winner’s connections, “Wow; that was impressive; that was insane; the gallop-out was nuts,” while still sitting on the powerhouse bay. Bred in Kentucky by Peter Blum Thoroughbreds, the winner collected his first score of 2018, after placing seventh (beaten a little more than a length) in the Grade 1 Manhattan in June and finishing second (by a neck) to Call Provision in a Saratoga allowance last time.
Hill, in town from Chicago, said it was easy.
“Literally, I didn’t do anything,” said the jockey, who got a leg up from good friend and Dilger assistant Brandon Meier. “The horse was ready, the horse was primed, I just sat up there.”
New York shipper Fire Key and Julian Pimentel return after winning the Sensible Lady at Laurel. Jim McCue/Maryland Jockey Club photo• Fire Key’s Saratoga didn’t exactly go according to plan as she labored in soft turf in the Caress Stakes July 23, got bumped and struggled even more in an off-the-turf optional claimer Aug. 12 and then lost all chance when a horse fell in front of her in the Smart N Fancy Stakes Aug. 26.
Trainer Pat Kelly stayed the course, however, and sent the 5-year-old mare to Laurel for the Sentimental Lady Turf Dash. The Backwards Stable homebred did the rest, rallying from ninth in a field of 10 to take the lead in mid-stretch and then hang on to win by a nose over Stevens and the even later-arriving Compelled. Fear No Evil was a head back in third after 6 furlongs on a rain-softened turf course in 1:14.96.
“Finally, the plan came together,” said Kelly. “It was a rough Saratoga with the rain and then the horse fell in front of us when I thought she was going to run a hole in the wind to set us up for this. Johnny (Velazquez) was lucky to stay aboard. We just got her home, got her down here and the turf wasn’t too soft for her so it was OK.”
A daughter of Friesan Fire, Fire Key was dismissed at nearly 12-1 despite five prior turf wins and a second in the race’s 2017 running. The New York-bred came into the race off eight consecutive starts in open company including a Saratoga allowance and a stakes at Aqueduct in November last year.
Fire Key surpassed $420,000 in career earnings and won for the sixth time (with seven seconds) in 22 starts.
• Order And Law broke his maiden in the Laurel Futurity for Lynch and Linder. The son of Violence finished fourth in Monmouth Park’s Tyro Stakes to start his career and was second, by a neck, in a Parx maiden in late August . . . New Jersey-bred Valedictorian wired 10 others in the All Along Stakes for Epic Racing and trainer Kelly Breen. The winner collected her ninth victory and second in a stakes after winning the Jersey Girl at Monmouth in July . . . Six-year-old Class And Cash won for the 13th time in his career in the Laurel Dash, charging up the rail to catch Dubini and win by a half-length for Cibelli and owner Edward Short . . . Monkeys Uncle won the finale, the Selima Stakes for 2-year-old fillies going 6 furlongs on the turf. Racing for Lael Stable and trainer Arnaud Delacour, the daughter of Uncle Mo rallied six wide off the turn to win by a half-length over Shoobiedoobydo (with Lynch looking for a fourth stakes win) with Helen third. Even-money favorite Elsa wound up seventh. Bred by Parrish Hill Farm and Ashford Stud, the winner won going two turns in her debut at Delaware Park Aug. 30.
