NEWS

Champion She Be Wild returns in Forward Gal

Posted: Thursday, January 28, 2010 5:15 PM

SHE BE WILD

Four Footed Fotos

by Tim Nichols

She Be Wild, the 2009 Eclipse Award winner as champion two-year-old filly, is set to make her three-year-old debut in the $150,000 Forward Gal Stakes (G2) on Sunday at Gulfstream Park.

Nancy Mazzoni’s homebred Offlee Wild filly sealed the championship in her most recent start, a three-quarter-length triumph in the Grey Goose Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) on November 6 at the Oak Tree meet at Santa Anita Park (video).

She Be Wild, who is trained by Wayne Catalano, has been working regularly since the Breeders’ Cup for her first race on a natural dirt surface, most recently drilling four furlongs in :47.20 handily on Wednesday at Gulfstream.

She Be Wild won four of her five starts last season, all coming on synthetic surfaces, and finished second in the Darley Alcibiades Stakes (G1) in October at Keeneland Race Course.

Leading the opposition against She Be Wild are Grade 3 winners Richiegirlgonewild and Ailalea.

Richiegirlgonewild opened her three-year-old season on January 9 by winning the Old Hat Stakes (G3) by one length at Gulfstream (video). Trained by Larry Rivelli for owner Richard Ravin, the Wildcat Heir filly will try for her fourth win in as many career starts.

Starlight Partners’ Ailalea enters on a two-race win streak, most recently taking the Tempted Stakes (G3) by 1¼ lengths on November 7 at Aqueduct (video). The Pulpit filly is trained by Todd Pletcher.

Other entrants include Romantic Hideway, who captured the Brandywine Stakes by two lengths at Philadelphia Park on December 28 in her most recent start (video). Since opening her career with a second-place finish at Monmouth Park on September 5, the City Zip filly has won three straight starts.

Multiple Grade 1-placed stakes winner Bickersons will try to breakthrough with her first graded stakes victory on Sunday. Lori and George Hall’s Silver Deputy filly won the Moccasin Stakes on November 22 (video) prior to finishing fifth in the Hollywood Starlet Stakes (G1) on December 20 in her most recent start.

An intriguing entrant is Liam’s Dream, a three-year-old filly from the lone crop of ill-fated 2005 Horse of the Year Saint Liam. Liam’s Dream will make her stakes debut off two wins at Philadelphia Park by a combined total of 8¾ lengths.

Tim Nichols is internet content editor of Thoroughbred Times

Forward Gal S.