Winter Memories ready to repeat 2011 according to trainer James Toner
After a splendid 3-year-old campaign under the training of James J. Toner, Winter Memories, according to her trainer is ready to wreak havoc on the track yet again this year, and she will start her dominance from the Grade 3, $150,000 Beaugay Stakes held
at Belmont Park on 5 May, 2012.
Owned by Phillips Racing Partnership, Winter Memories, landed a super graded stakes hat-trick in her first three starts of the season including the Grade 3 Appalachian Stakes over at a mile at Keeneland’s turf course, and then defeating the rampant Celestial
Kitten in the Grade 2 Sands Point at about 1 1/16 miles, and downing her hat-trick with a win in the Grade 2 Lake George Stakes at Saratoga.
Trainer James Toner has heaped praise on the newly turned 4-year-old filly, and said “I don’t know if you had a chance to look at her, close up, but she really filled out and developed over the winter,” said Toner, who trains the El Prado filly for Phillips
Racing Partnership. “She looks great, she’s doing super, and we’re ready to go.”
The Kentucky bred daughter of El Prado has been a real easy runner for James Toner, who has pleased to see that his horse is ready to go for yet another campaign, but he admits that finding a jockey for his Kentucky Derby prospect was a little more complicated
than training Winter Memories.
“Needless to say it was fun trying to line up a rider, but we got one,” said Toner. “We’re fortunate that we were able to get Eddie Castro. It’s one of those days, I guess, probably one of the few days in the entire year that all the jockeys are gone.”
Out of Silver Hawk mare Memories of Silver, Winter Memories out of 6 starts last season won 4, and her defeat came in the Grade 2 Lake Placid Stakes to winner Hungry Island, and the Grade 1 QE II Challenge Cup where she finished fourth to, Together.
Her biggest win of the season was her win in the Grade 1 Garden City Stakes at Belmont Park, where she won the 1 1/8 mile test over Theyskens’ Theory and More Than Real.
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