Maddie May Preview: Make Mischief Back In Action

OZONE PARK, NY – Gary Barber’s Make Mischief is back in action at the stakes level and brings plenty of class into Saturday’s $100,000 Maddie May Stakes at Aqueduct.

The Maddie May is a one-turn dirt mile event restricted to New York-bred 3-year-old fillies. This year’s edition is the penultimate event on a 9-race card and has a local post time of 4:50 PM.

Here’s a look at the full field for the Maddie May:

1. Vacay 7/2 – She won 2 straight to start her career, including the 6-furlong Key Cents Stakes by 5 1/2 lengths over this course against her own kind last November. She returned from a 2-month break to finish third in January’s 6 1/2-furlong Franklin Square Stakes while running over a muddy (sealed) version of the local main track. Top trainer Todd Pletcher conditions her.

2. Frost Me 9/2 – She’s used her high cruising speed and distance pedigree to put together a 3-2-1-0 record while never going shorter than this and exits an optional claiming victory over this course and distance against two of these rivals. She’s the first of two from trainer John Kimmel; she and Secret Love worked in tandem on February 13, covering 4 furlongs in :50.85.

“We didn’t ask them for any kind of speed in the breeze, but they did gallop out extremely well all the way around to the 3/4 pole,” Kimmel said.

3. Make Mischief 5/1 – After breaking her maiden on debut against her own kind, she finished second in the Schuylerville (G3) and the Adirondack (G2), then dropped back down for the state-bred Seeking the Ante. She was again runner-up that day, but after finishing fifth routing in the Chandelier Stakes (G2), she won last time out going 7 furlongs here in a state-bred allowance.

4. Teetotaler 15/1 – Peter Brant shelled out $500k for this half-sister to Chestertown, a $2 million yearling whose form didn’t take an upward trajectory until halfway through his 3-year-old season. She could be on a similar path after needing 3 starts to break her maiden, a rarity from the Chad Brown barn. Her win came last out over this course and distance.

5. Shanes Pretty Lady 8/1 – Pletcher’s second entry broke her maiden at first asking while with another trainer, then hit the board in 3 of 4 starts for her current stable. She lost to Make Mischief, Frost Me, and Vacay in those defeats and needs to turn the tables against all of them. Her career-best 70 Beyer Speed Figure came over this course and distance behind Frost Me.

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6. Irish Constitution 10/1 – She returns to the races for the first time since finishing October 1, when she led the 7-furlong Joseph Gimma Stakes at Belmont Park from the start until the final jumps, losing by a neck. Trainer Ray Handal connects at a middling 10% with a $2.43 ROI when his barn returns from similar layoffs. She broke her maiden on debut at Saratoga.

7. Secret Love 6/1 – She brings a 3-2-1-0 record into her second stakes try after she won the Franklin Square by 1 1/2 lengths, but she’s just as tough on fast tracks, too. Her maiden-breaking debut score was a 6 1/4-length romp going 6 furlongs at Belmont Park and she reunites with Pablo Morales for the second straight start. This is her first try beyong 6 1/2 furlongs.

“I would think (stretching out) would be within her scope to be able to do that,” Kimmel said. “She’s not rank and she doesn’t pull hard. I think if she gets a more comfortable scenario in the early stages, she should be able to carry herself a mile.”

8. Brattle House 3/1 – The least-experienced runner steps up to the stakes ranks with just a single start under her belt; she rocked her own kind by 5 1/4 lengths over this same course and distance last November. OXO Equine plunked down $775k to buy her from co-breeder Christophe Clement, who trained her dam Savvy Sassy to win her first 2 career starts.

“Going 1 mile first out is not easy to do, but Clement had her ready and she won,” said owner OXO Equine’s racing manager Don Chatlos. “She’s had the winter down in (Florida) and we’re hoping to see her best on Saturday. One of the reasons we gave Clement the filly is because he trained the broodmare, so he knows the family really well. You trust Christophe in those situations. He has Hall of Fame credentials. He could have waited for an allowance, but he sees something he likes in going after this stakes.”

9. Cara’s Dreamer 20/1 – It took her 7 tries before she broke her maiden, finally succeeding last November in a gate-to-wire score routing 1 1/16 miles over the inner turf. She returned to dirt while facing winners for the first time and finished third, 7 lengths behind winner Frost Me and 6 behind runner-up Shanes Pretty Lady. Distance is no issue, but is her speed?

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