Dream It Is Returns to Woodbine Looking for a Stakes Win

Dream It Is will return to Woodbine, where she launched her undefeated juvenile campaign last year, for this Saturday’s $100,000 Star Shoot Stakes. The six-furlong sprint for three-year-old fillies will headline the May 12 program, which kicks off at 1 p.m.

Trained by Barbara Minshall for Hoolie Racing Stable, Dream It Is was recognized as a Sovereign Award finalist, second in the voting to Wonder Gadot, after going three-for-three as a two-year-old including wins in Woodbine’s My Dear Stakes and the Grade 3 Schuylerville Stakes at Saratoga.

She wintered at Webb Carroll Training Center in South Carolina under the care of Travis Durr with frequent visits from Minshall, who was impressed by her pre-season training.

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“She’s always been a very, very adaptable horse, very good minded, very easy going. She’s bigger, she’s stronger, she’s a three-year-old and everything is great with her,” said Minshall of the filly’s development.

The Kentucky-bred Shackleford-Reve Enchante filly returned to Woodbine a couple of weeks ago after starting her sophomore campaign last month at Keeneland, where she pressed the pace and finished fifth competing against graded stakes company in the approximate seven-furlong Beaumont.

“I thought she ran a good race,” said Minshall. “She was coming back off a long layoff – she was laid up since the summer – and she ran hard. It was a tough distance for coming off a long layoff, but she ran a good race. I was happy with her and she came out of it well.”

Dream It Is heads into the Star Shoot off a pair of Woodbine works, breezing five furlongs in 1:01 on April 28 and four furlongs handily in :47 on May 5.

She will be reunited with Luis Contreras, who was aboard for all her juvenile wins and has won the last three editions of the Star Shoot (Ancient Goddess in 2015, Treasuring in 2016, R Naja in 2017).

The field includes Calumet Farm homebred Closer Still and Debby Oxley’s supplemental entry Sly Beauty, both trained by Mark Casse. The Tony Gattellaro-trained Wild Lute has also been supplemented to the Star Shoot and will run back off a maiden-breaking victory last Saturday at Woodbine for Tucci Holdings. Co-bred by Oxley with Laura Ann Wieczorek, Magic Spell completes the line-up for trainer Gail Cox, who co-owns with John Menary.

The complete field for the Star Shoot Stakes (race eight) is listed below in post position order.

$100,000 Star Shoot Stakes
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer
1. Sly Beauty (S) – Eurico Rosa Da Silva – Mark Casse
2. Wild Lute (S) – Rafael Hernandez – Tony Gattellaro
3. Closer Still – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse
4. Magic Spell – Gary Boulanger – Gail Cox
5. Dream It Is – Luis Contreras – Barbara Minshall