In the Clásico Estrellas Junior Sprint, Sarzana Pass will face her toughest challenge yet

The Distinctiv Passion filly tops a field featuring emerging talents, unbeaten runners, and precocious stakes winners, in a race that promises action right from the break

Sarzana Pass, already a multiple stakes winner, seeks revenge against La Bella Otero / JUAN I. BOZZELLO

One of the three original races within the Estrellas program, the Junior Sprint (G3-1000m, dirt, $24,000,000 to the winner) is always a highlight of the wonderful series created and organized by the Fundación Equina Argentina.

A look back at its history shows that many of the division’s great figures used this race as a springboard to the big leagues, the most recent example being Labrado (Le Blues), who won it in 2022 before going on to claim two editions of the Sprint (G1), a title he will try to capture once again today.

This time, 12 names line up, with fate placing before Sarzana Pass (Distinctiv Passion) the toughest challenge of her career so far. The El Alfalfar homebred, to be ridden by Francisco Leandro, comes off a win in the Clásico Carlos Pezoa 76 days ago and will now face one of the only two rivals to have defeated her.

That filly is La Bella Otero (Daddy Long Legs), who beat her when both debuted and who recently returned with a valuable and courageous victory in the Clásico General Lavalle (G3), prompting her owners to pay the supplement to enter her here, as she was not originally nominated to the series.

Another strong contender is Lindo Tono Pass (Distinctiv Passion), who broke his maiden at third asking and then stepped up to win the Clásico Velocidad (G3) over the turf at San Isidro, showing plenty of grit.

The unbeaten pair of Tranquila Señora (Fortify) and Claro Bombón (Claro Oscuro) will put their records on the line in what shapes as a competitive and evenly matched race, while Campo Verde (Strategos) was a bullet winner on debut before finishing third in both the Velocidad and the General Lavalle, and will be out for revenge here.

La Alfonso (Grand Reward) has won a pair of Estrellas races in the provinces, but was far back in the aforementioned Lavalle, although she deserves another chance, while Viejo Cuchara (Il Campione), representing La Plata, will try to make use of his already considerable experience.