Hot on the heels of her devastating two-and-a-quarter length victory in the Breeders' Crown Open Pace, My Little Dragon is preparing to burn up the Mohawk track again on Saturday in the first of two $50,000 eliminations for the Milton Stakes for fillies and mares aged three and up.
Despite having drawn Post 8, the five-year-old brown daughter of Dragon Again is listed as the 2-5 favourite. She is a double millionaire, with a record of nine wins in 20 starts this season, including the Artiscape Stakes at Vernon Downs, and an $85,000 leg of the Classic Series, the Matriarch Stakes, and the $250,000 Distaff Stakes, all at the Meadowlands. Stationed with trainer Mike Vanderkemp for her stay north of the border, My Little Dragon will enjoy the piloting skills of her regular driver, Brian Sears, in her Milton Stakes elim.
The second of the two Milton Stakes eliminations will feature Kelly O'Donnell pupil, Tidewaterdragonfly, another brown daughter of Dragon Again, who will leave from the inside post position in a field of seven mares.
The winner of the Roses Are Red Stakes at Mohawk earlier this summer, Tidewaterdragonfly's earnings stand less than $50,000 shy of a million dollars, lifetime, for owners David Beachler and Annefuria Singleton, of Suffolk, Virginia. She's rated the lukewarm 4-1 favourite in her division, and her most probable challenger is Marnie Hall, who hails from the shedrow of Mark Silva. A six-year-old daughter of Blissful Hall, Quebec-owned Marnie Hall boasts millionaire status and, although she only has one win to her credit this year, she has been second three times in her last four starts.
The Milton Stakes eliminations will be races 2 and 9 on Mohawk's Saturday night card, which also features the $728,600 Maple Leaf Trot and three Ontario Sires Stakes gold events. Post times are 7:51 p.m. and 10:18 p.m.
The $395,000 Milton Stakes final is scheduled for Saturday, September 27, with the top five finishers in each elimination advancing.
To view Saturday's entries, click here.
(With files from WEG)