Favorites back for rescheduled stakes

A week after cold temperatures resulted in the cancellation of racing Feb. 8 at Turfway Park, the rescheduled $75,000 John Battaglia Memorial is back on tap Friday evening at Turfway, serving as a prep for the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby Steaks there March 9.

Although the field lost a couple of entries, down from 12 to 10 horses, the two favorites from the initial entries remain. They are 6-5 Some like it hot brown and 2-1 The Mackem Bullet, both of whom were competitive in the Breeders’ Cup at Churchill Down sin November. Some like it hot brown ran third after setting the pace in the Juvenile Turf, and The Mackem Bullet, a filly, finished sixth of 14 in the Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Others in the Battaglia, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-olds on Polytrack, include Wallace, a stakes winner at Woodbine last year; Dabo, fifth most recently in a turf allowance at Gulfstream won by Dania Beach Stakes winner A Thread of Blue; and Echo Alpha Six, third in an allowance Jan. 11 at Fair Grounds.

The Battaglia marks the first start since the Breeders’ Cup for Some like it hot brown, who spent the early part of the year in Florida, where he recorded four breezes at Gulfstream. When this race was delayed a week, he gained an opportunity to work over the synthetic surface at Turfway, breezing five furlongs in 1:01.40 on Feb. 9.

KEY CONTENDERS

Some like it hot brown, by Big Brown Last 3 Beyers: 82-82-75

◗ Although his natural speed will likely place him close to Bet Turfway with DRF Bets: drfbets.com

the pace under new rider Rafael Hernandez, trainer Mike Maker said he would like to see him ridden as patiently as possible. In the Breeders’ Cup and in his second-place finishes in the Grade 3 Pilgrim and Grade 3 With Anticipation, he was outfinished after holding the lead in the stretch.

“I think he’s waiting on horses,” Maker said. “He fools ’em. So we’ll try to wait as long as we can this time.”

The Mackem Bullet, by Society Rock Last 3 Beyers: 78-80-NA

◗ After The Mackem Bullet won a first-level allowance by 10 1/2 lengths on Dec. 31 at Turfway, trainer Wesley Ward had planned to train her up to the $100,000 Bourbonette, a stakes race for 3-year-old fillies on the Jeff Ruby undercard. But her readiness to race prompted him to enter her in the Battaglia.

“What you see on the form isn’t as good as she is,” Ward said of The Mackem Bullet, who finished second in a Group 1 and a Group 2 in Britain before the Breeders’ Cup.

Dabo, by Temple City Last 3 Beyers: 61-51-64

◗ After finishing seventh and fifth in allowance races on dirt at Churchill and the turf at Gulfstream following a private purchase, he should benefit from a return to racing on Polytrack. He made up 15 lengths in the final quarter-mile to win his debut last summer on the Polytrack at Arlington.