Come One, Come All in Wide Open Comely

While the main event on Aqueduct’s stakes-loaded Saturday card is the GI Cigar Mile, the GIII Comely S. to be run two races earlier is arguably the most contentious tilt of the day. The ever-patient Shug McGaughey sends out a pair of fillies who have been climbing the class ladder in Carrumba (Bernardini) and Fast Retailing (Malibu Moon). Carrumba, the slight 3-1 favorite, has won three consecutive races in New York and returns to a two-turn trip for the first time since capturing a maiden event over the Comely’s nine-furlong trip at Saratoga Aug. 21. Fast Retailing figures to go off at significantly longer odds, but the bay has demonstrated steady improvement in her five career starts. The duo will face a number of proven graded stakes performers, including Treadway Racing Stable’s Wonder Gal (Tiz Wonderful). The sophomore has been close in a number of tries at the highest level, most notably when she came up third beaten one length by Curalina (Curlin) in the one-mile GI Acorn S. at Belmont June 6 and second behind Include Betty (Include) in that venue’s GI Mother Goose S. June 27. She recently bounced back from a dull eighth-place run in the GI Test S. with a decisive victory in the Empire Distaff for New York-breds at Belmont Oct. 24. Qatar Racing’s Peace and War (War Front) became a Grade I winner in Keeneland’s GI Alcibiades S. last year but has yet to return to the winner’s circle since then. The bay closed well to be third in Parx’s GI Cotillion S. Sept. 19 and recently was done in by a wide draw when 12th as a 61-1 outsider in the GI Breeders’ Cup Distaff Oct. 31. The Graham Motion trainee lands the rail slot for this first appearance in New York and should be able to save ground before commencing her usual late rally. Charles Fipke homebred Forever Unbridled (Unbridled’s Song) finished third in the wake of GISW I’m a Chatterbox (Munnings) in a pair of graded stakes at the Fair Grounds earlier this term and recently returned from an extended layoff to run fifth in Keenneland’s GII Raven Run S. The bay obtains the services of Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez and figures to do her best running in the stretch if there is adequate pace up front.