By Christie DeBernardis
Canadian Horse of the Year and MGISW Catch a Glimpse (City Zip) and GSW Time and Motion (Tapit) have developed a bit of a rivalry throughout the past two seasons with Catch a Glimpse coming out on top in two of their three meetings. However, Time and Motion got the better of her millionaire rival last time, ending Catch a Glimpse's perfect record on grass with a neck victory in the GII Lake Placid S. Aug. 21, and will look to tie things up on the scoreboard in Saturday's GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup at Keeneland.
Two-time Sovereign Award winner Catch a Glimpse captured her first eight starts on the turf, including last term's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, in which Time and Motion finished fifth. Besting males with a front running score in the GIII Penn Mile June 4, she went wire-to-wire once again in the 10-furlong GI Belmont Oaks Invitational S., silencing all of those who argued she was distance limited and besting Time and Motion by a half-length. Catch a Glimpse went straight to the front last time in Saratoga's Lake Placid, but this time was unable to hold off a determined late bid from Time and Motion, who followed her maiden breaker at Gulfstream in March with wins in the Memories of Silver S. and Wonder Again S. this spring.
“If there is a tougher 3-year-old filly race, I haven't seen it,” trainer Jimmy Toner said. “The fillies in there have won 37 races.”
Some 53 weeks after winning the GIII Jessamine S. in Lexington, Larkin Armstrong's Harmonize (Scat Daddy) returns to Keeneland in hopes of scoring her second straight win at the highest level after shipping west to capture the GI Del Mar Oaks last time Aug. 20. Closing strongly to finish a hard-luck third behind Catch a Glimpse in Churchill's GIII Edgewood S. May 6, the Bill Mott pupil came up a half-length short when second to Time and Motion in the Wonder Again S. a month later and was fifth in the Belmont Oaks July 9.
“Our filly's pretty versatile,” Riley Mott, assistant to his father, told the Keeneland notes team. “Junior [Alvarado] knows her very well. She has a win over the course, so we'll just play it from the break and see how it unfolds. She's really matured and she's training extremely well. We're not afraid to take those other two on; we're here to win.”
The biggest threat to the top two, however, may come in the form of a rival they have yet to face in Stuart Janney homebred On Leave (War Front). A half-sister to MGSW and recent GI Shadwell Turf Mile runner-up Ironicus (Distorted Humor), the Shug McGaughey trainee is four-for-four this season, opening her sophomore account by donning cap and gown over the Belmont lawn June 9. Capturing an optional claimer in Elmont July 17, the gray scored a decisive victory in Saratoga's Riskaverse S. Aug. 25 and went gate-to-wire in Belmont's nine-panel GII Sands Point S. last time Sept. 17.
“She just keeps getting better,” said Reeve McGaughey, assistant to his Hall of Fame father. “She has won four straight and won in four different ways, but this is her toughest test yet.”
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