Roman Heart Registers at Lincoln; Sixteen Distaff Stars in Top Elight: Atalanta to Meet Lillal over Route, Daily Racing Form, 1954-06-09

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Roman Roman Heart Heart Registers Registers at at Lincoln; Lincoln; Sixteen Sixteen Distaff Distaff Stars Stars in in Top Top Flight Flight Atalanta to Meet Lillal Over Route Sunshine Nell, La Corredora And Home-Made Will Battle For Rich Belmont Fixture By BOB HOBWOOD Staff Correspondent BELMONT PARK, Elmont, L. I., N. Y., June A whopping field of 16 fillies and mares, including the best distaff runners in training, has been named for tomorrows fifteenth running of the 5,000 added Top Flight Handicap. Five of the candidates to this mile and a sixteenth, including Darby Dan Farms Atalanta, who is topweight with 126 pounds, met recently in the Colonial Handicap at Garden State. Atalanta finished eighth in that dash, while Warner L. Jones, Jr.s Lillal, 118, won it. Mrs. Wallace Gilroys Emardee, 114, fin-, ished second in the Colonial, E. P. Taylors Canadiana, 113, was seventh, and Meyer J. Kaplans Sunshine Nell, 125, finished 10th after losing all chance when she stumbled at the start. Had Some Excuse in Colonial Atalanta had some excuse in the six-furlong Colonial, being blocked at the first turn after breaking slowly and having to force her way between horses to reach contention. -However, her two previous starts at Garden State and Gulfstream were not encouraging. Earlier, she had won the Suwannee River Cap at Gulfstream and finished unplaced in the Black Helen at Hialeah won by Gainsboro Girl. That Shawmut Stable mare gets in the Top Flight with 114 pounds and finished between Isidore Biebers Nothirdchance and Sunshine Nell in a race at the Top Flight distance here at Belmont. Lillai, who will be accompanied by Kenny Church on her local invasion, led throughout the Colonial and finished three lengths before Emardee, but had finished, second Continued on Page Forty Sixteen Distaff Stars In Belmonts Top Flight Atalanta, Lillal, Sunshine Nell, La Corredora Main Contenders Continued from Page One in her two previous starts, which were also sprints. She will be coupled with Canadiana. While it is almost as difficult to find the favorite in this field as to select a winner, Sunshine Nell and Atalanta have frequently demonstrated their class, Marian W. OConnors La Corredora, 125, and Alfred G. Vanderbilts Home-Made, 118, finished inches apart in a mile race here last week, and Gainsboro Girl appears a much-improved mare. Her local popularity and the fact that Eddie Arcaro will most likely be in the saddle will probably make Sunshine Nell a slight choice. Ira Hanford, her regular rider, will be on La Corredora, who won last years Ladies Handicap on this track. Eric Guerin will ride the rather erratic Home-Made, who appeared to most-observers to have at least gained a dead-heat with La Corredora last week. Gainsboro Girl will again be ridden by Augustine Catalano. Ted Atkinson will attract some support to Nothirdchance, who was overmatched in the Suburban last out, but has many fine races, against those of her own sex here at Belmont Park. Hedley Woodhouse, who fits her well, will be on Emardee, who finished gamely in the Colonial and may hold on for part of the stake tomorrow. Several of the Top Flight lightweights could be dangerous on their best form. Arnold Hangers Intencion, a South American mare who has been training well, finished second to Atalanta in the Suwannee River at Gulfstream and third behind Wise Margin and Ruhe in the rich Gulfstream Park Handicap. She will get in with 112 pounds and has no rider as yet. John S. Phipps Spinning Top, also 112, finished fairly well in two sprints and showed enough speed last year to win the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico". Bill Boland will ride. R. S. Howards Mabs Choice, who gets in with 106 and will have the services of Angel Valenzuela, finished between Miss Weesie and Spinning Top last out and appears a natural stayer. Harry LaMontagnes Valadium, who has turned in many good races here in other years, was a distant third behind La Corredora and Home-Made last out and was beaten by Nothirdchance, Gainsboro Girl, Sunshine Nell and Mabs Choice before that. She carries 108 pounds and Bennie Green. The field is completed by Mrs. Charles Silvers Lavender Hill, 111; Hampton Stables La Perouse, 106, and Samuel A. Pecks Blanquita, 102 pounds. Lavender Hill, who will be ridden by Conn McCreary, has showed nothing locally, but finished fast in a series of stakes last winter. In its comparatively brief history, the Top Flight, which is named for C. V. Whitneys grand filly of almost 25 years ago, has been won by such notable distaff runners as Tangled, Level Best, Mar-Kell, Boo-jiana, Miss Keeneland, But Why Not, Nell K Busanda, Renew, and last year, Marta.


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1950s/drf1954060901/drf1954060901_1_2
Local Identifier: drf1954060901_1_2
Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800