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player ready...California speed will attempt to overpower the 14-horse field in the form of unbeaten Bertrando. The son of 1986 Classic winner Skywalker is the quickest runner the West Coast has to offer.
Bertrando has captured all three of his starts. He was headed and came back to win his debut Aug. 25 at Del Mar, and next won the Grade II Futurity at that track Sept. 11. He then overcame early pressure to post his most impressive score with a nine-length romp in the Grade I Norfolk at Santa Anita Oct. 13. Regular jockey Alex Solis will ride the 5-2 morning line favorite.
European champion Arazi is the best foreign 2-year-old to contest the Juvenile. Still, French super trainer Francois Boutin would rather not run Saturday.
He told owner Allen Paulson that the smallish colt deserved a rest after winning six of seven turf races this year.
”It is the owner`s idea to run the horse on the dirt,” Boutin said.
”It`s an experiment. I`m not as confident as I would be if the race were in Europe.”
Arazi will have his work cut out for him in the Juvenile. The second choice on the morning line is scheduled to break from the outside in a 14-horse field.