Second of Two $100,000 Turf Stakes for 3YOs Sunday at Laurel
Jockey Russell Registers Friday Hat Trick; Triple Carryovers Saturday

BALTIMORE – Sycamore Hall Thoroughbreds’ Circling the Drain, a homebred gelding that is stakes-placed on both turf and dirt, will face seven rivals seeking a breakthrough stakes victory in the $100,000 Bald Eagle Derby Sunday at Laurel Park.

The 1 3/16-mile Bald Eagle Derby for 3-year-olds is the co-headliner on a nine-race program following the $100,000 Searching for 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/16 miles, both scheduled for the turf. First race post time is 12:25 p.m.

Circling the Drain will be making his third straight start on the grass for Maryland’s leading trainer, Brittany Russell. His first six races came on dirt, alternating wins and seconds in the first four with his victories coming by nine combined lengths.

A bay son of West Coast, a two-time Grade 1 winner of more than $5.8 million in purses, Circling the Drain made his stakes debut in the 1 1/16-mile Private Terms March 18, finishing a troubled third. He followed up by breaking slowly and racing wide while running seventh, beaten less than four lengths, in the 1 1/8-mile Federico Tesio April 15. It is the only time in eight starts where he has been worse than third.

“We always thought he was going to be a turf horse,” Russell said. “Naturally he started his career on the dirt and he’s done plenty of good there, too, but we also thought he might be just that much better on the grass. We were always sort of excited to try it.”

Circling the Drain got his chance May 20 on the undercard of the 148th Preakness Stakes (G1), Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown, at historic Pimlico Race Course. Pinched back early, he trailed all but one horse before rallying to be third at odds of 13-1 in the one-mile James W. Murphy behind Grade 3 winner Nagirroc’s track-record performance.

Encouraged by the effort, the connections kept Circling the Drain on turf in a 1 1/8-mile entry-level allowance for Maryland-bred/sired horses July 8 at Laurel, going off as the favorite and drawing away to a three-length triumph over his elders under Russell’s husband, Sheldon Russell, who returns to ride from Post 6.

“When we ran him Preakness weekend, he ran third behind a really good horse and he had a little bit of traffic trouble. That was a really, really credible race, we thought,” Brittany Russell said. “We were lucky. We used a condition last time and he won at Laurel on the grass, which is great. It was what we were looking to do, get him a win and get him confidence and kind of keep his spot. I think it’s a good thing.”

Circling the Drain, listed at 6-1 on the morning line, has breezed twice on Laurel’s main track since his most recent win, going a half-mile in 48 seconds July 27 and five furlongs in 1:00.60 Aug. 6. Both moves were the fastest recorded on the day.

“His works have been great. He’s doing very good,” Russell said. “He’s always been that big, good-doing kind of horse. He’s like the kind that you’d say would run on broken glass. If you walk him over, he’s going to show up and run his race. He doesn’t care about age group or whatever it is, he loves his job and he shows up.”

Among the Bald Eagle Derby competition are Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners’ Ari Gold, making his second start of the year after finishing his juvenile campaign with back-to-back wins including the 7 ½-furlong Pulpit on the Gulfstream Park turf; and Harold Lerner, Nehoc Stables, AWC Stables and Team Stallion Racing Stables’ Mendelssohns March, runner-up in the 1 1/8-mile Audubon June 3 at Churchill Downs installed as the 9-5 program favorite.

The Bald Eagle Derby, named for the two-time Washington D.C. International winner and the nation’s champion handicap horse of 1960, is carded as Race 8 with a post time of 4:02 p.m.

Notes: Jockey Sheldon Russell swept Friday’s early daily double with Emm Ess Eh ($3.60) in Race 1 and Sorolla ($7.60) in Race 2. Russell added a third winner with Quincannon ($18.40) in Race 5 … Sorolla is trained by Milan Milosevic, who also sent out Daily Planet ($) to win Race 9 … Charlie Marquez rode both Daily Planet and Stellar Lute ($8) in Race 4 … The Elkstone Group’s 2-year-old Maryland homebred Emm Ess Eh, making her second start, was pressed all the way up front before pulling away late to capture the maiden special weight for juvenile fillies in 1:27.28 for seven furlongs on a fast main track … Friday’s other maiden special weight for 2-year-old fillies was won by Twin Creeks Farm’s debut homebred Testament ($11.40) in Race 6 … Robert Brittingham and James Wasserson’s Destin’s Mission ($6.40) was a popular front-running allowance winner in Race 7, giving trainer John Servis his 1,999th career victory … DAT Racing Stable’s Dats Mr. Mo ($35.60), a sophomore son of champion Uncle Mo, sprung a 16-1 upset in Race 8, an open allowance for 3-year-olds and up sprinting seven furlongs. It was his second straight win following a maiden special weight triumph going the same distance, also against elders, July 23 at Laurel … There will be carryovers of $7,217.67 in the 50-cent Late Pick 5 (Races 5-9), $775.99 in the 20-cent Rainbow 6 (Races 4-9) and $1,296.10 in the $1 Jackpot Super High Five (Race 6) for Saturday’s program that begins at 12:25 p.m.