Bed O’ Roses a Thorny Challenge

Gamblers seem unlikely to get rich in Saturday’s GII Bed O’ Roses H. at Belmont Park, as the top three horses look to have a corner on the market.

La Verdad (Yes It’s True) is the field’s most prolific graded stakes winner with three to her credit and can become racing’s newest millionaire with a third-place effort or better in this spot. The noted front-runner, campaigned by Lady Sheila Stable, was seventh against the males in the GIII Fall Highweight H. at Aqueduct in November, then used that trademark early speed to successfully defend her title in Aqueduct’s GII Distaff H. first off the November layoff Apr. 18. She added an extra sixteenth of a mile for the GIII Vagrancy H. May 16 and managed to last by a half-length over Room for Me (Harlington) while giving that rival five pounds. La Verdad will be the controlling speed, but the biggest question is a seven-furlong distance at which she is winless in a couple of tries.

Conversely, Dame Dorothy (Bernardini) has never lost in three tries at this specialist trip. Accorded ‘TDN Rising Star’ status off a debut victory at Aqueduct in 2013, the Bobby Flay colorbearer defeated Sheer Drama (Burning Roma) in the restricted Florida Sunshine Millions Distaff S. Jan. 17 and most recently decisioned champion Judy the Beauty (Ghostzapper) by a hard-fought neck in the GI Humana Distaff S. May 2. In return, she starts here as the 123-pound highweight, but is the best stayer of the top three selections.

Room for Me has been another revelation for trainer David Jacobson, with three wins in four appearances off a $12,500 claim in February. Victorious in the Videogenic S. in her first start in Jacobson’s colors Mar. 21, she dusted a second-level allowance at Belmont May 8 before just missing in the Vagrancy eight days later. She validated 1-5 favoritism in a May 24 Belmont allowance and has her fourth start in 43 days Saturday afternoon.