For the first time since 2012 a horse not named Wise Dan will win Friday's $300,000 Maker's 46 Mile at Keeneland. The two-time Horse of the Year is not among the seven turf runners entered in the mile event.
Going for a second straight win will be Long On Value, traind by Hall of Famer Bill Mott for Wachtel Sable and George Kerr. The 4-year-old colt will be ridden again by Joel Rosario from post 2.
Long On Value is coming off a victory on Feb. 21 in Gulfstream Park's Canadian Turf in which he posted an upset at odds of 10-1. The colt had wins last year in Canterbury Park's Mystic Lake Derby and Santa Anita's Twilight Derby. Long On Value has career earnings of $504,198 with six wins in 15 starts.
Trainer Todd Pletcher will saddle Jack Milton on Friday with the 5-year-old's regular jockey Javier Castellano in the saddle. Owned by Gary Barber, Jack Milton will be making his second seasonal start after finishing fourth in the Canadian Turf.
"He is doing well and coming into the race the right way," said Tristan Barry, assistant to Pletcher. "This race was one that was on the radar for him. We thought he ran very well in his last race. He had a wide trip that day in his first start off a (five-month) layoff."
The Maker's 46 Mile will be Jack Milton's second lifetime start on the Keeneland turf course, having won the Transylvania Stakes in 2013. His only stakes win last year came in Belmont Park's Poker followed by a fifth in Santa Anita's Shoemaker Mile, third in the Fourstardave at Saratoga and ninth in the Woodbine Mile. Jack Milton has four wins in 14 career starts for $571,161.
Here is the field for the Maker's 46 Mile in post position order: Skyring, Martin Pedroza; Long On Value, Joel Rosario; Summer Front, Victor Espinoza; Aripeka, Julien Leparoux; Legendary, Sheldon Russell; Za Approval, Mike Smith and Jack Milton, Javier Castellano.
The Maker's 46 Mile has an approximate post time of 5:13 p.m. ET.
[SportsNetwork.com]
