Envidiada steps up to stakes company in sharp form as she faces older mares for the first time

The Il Campione filly shapes up as a leading contender for the G3 General Güemes, while Portal Maya targets the Handicap Ráfaga

Envidiada has earned two of her three victories over the Palermo dirt / JUAN I. BOZZELLO

By the time the final list of entries for the GI Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini becomes known, the week’s most important race will already be on deck: the G3 General Güemes (1000m), run down the Palermo dirt chute. The race brings together fillies and mares three and up, though with a surprisingly modest winner’s purse of ARS 9,965,000, a low figure for a graded event of this stature.

The lone 3-year-old in the field is Envidiada, who makes the jump from the allowance ranks in sharp form after two consecutive victories, seeking to take full advantage of the weight-for-age scale so favorable at this point of the season. The daughter of Il Campione will carry 56 kilos, while her older rivals tote 60.

Trained by Hugo Pérez at San Isidro’s Campo 2, the Don Armando filly returns to the surface over which she earned her first two wins, after a narrow turf success up north against a strong group.

A stern test for Envidiada will come from seasoned mare Enjoy Dancing (Hi Happy), who arrives off a string of solid performances, including a runner-up finish in the G3 Condesa and a third-place effort in the G2 Venezuela.

Breaking from the rail will be Bantia (John F Kennedy), a mare who has been steadily improving and most recently finished a good second to Doña Chila (Peten Itza) in the Handicap Solyluz.

A Wide-Open Handicap

Earlier in the afternoon, the Handicap Ráfaga (2000m) will kick off the day’s stakes action at Palermo. For mares four and older, originally scheduled for turf, but will switch to dirt.

The likely favorite is Portal Maya (Portal del Alto, 53 kilos), and her chances increase significantly if the race is contested on the main track, where she delivered a runaway victory followed by a narrow three-quarter-length defeat to Miss Talento (Equal Talent) in the Handicap Nigromante.

Argomasa (Lucullan, 58 kilos) scored in the Clásico Sierra Balcarce, but was pulled up in the G2 Los Haras last time out. If she has recovered fully, she will be the one they must beat.