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Awesome Feather floats through Florida Stallion Stakes
sweep
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Awesome Feather outclassed her Calder rivals on Saturday
(Jim Lisa Photos) |
Fred and Jane Brei's Jacks or Better Farm, trainer Stanley Gold and jockey
Jeffrey Sanchez swept last year's Florida Stallion S. series for colts and
geldings with Jackson Bend (Hear No Evil). On Saturday, that same team sent out
AWESOME FEATHER (Awesome of Course) to complete a sweep of the fillies' series
with a dominating 8 1/4-length victory in the
My
Dear Girl division.
The talented miss became just the third
filly in the 29-year-old history of the program to take all three legs, joining
Nancy's Glitter (1997) and Aclassysassylassy (2004).
The bay filly stayed in close attendance to pacesetter My Precious
Baby (With Distinction) through the opening half, took over as she
pleased on the backstretch and simply outran her rivals despite
stretching out past seven furlongs for the first time when running 1
1/16 miles here in 1:48 on the fast main track.
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"After her last win going seven furlongs in the Susan's Girl
(division), I was confident that the longer distance today was going to
be her best race," Sanchez said. "She got a little rank going in the
first turn, but that's not uncommon for two-year-olds running route
races for the first time. She settled down when we hit the backstretch
and just blew them away when I asked her to run."
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Awesome Feather could put
her unbeaten mark on the line in the Breeders' Cup
(Jim Lisa Photos) |
Awesome Feather is now perfect in five starts and has banked $406,725
lifetime. In addition to her wins in the first two divisions, the Desert Vixen
and Susan's Girl, the homebred lass captured the J J'sdream S. in her second
career outing.
Gold wasn't a bit unclear on what's next for his star filly.
"Breeders' Cup! That's what we discussed going into the race. If she won and
did it right, we'd go to the (November 5) Breeders' Cup (Juvenile Fillies
[G1])," he said. "I knew she was good, but I don't think I was prepared for the
performance she gave today. You always wonder if they are as good as you hope
they are. In her case, I think I underestimated her.
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"She'll tell us between now and then if she's good to go, but that's the
plan."
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Reprized Halo found his form just in time to take the In Reality
(Jim Lisa Photos) |
Gourmet Dinner (Trippi) was also seeking a sweep of the Florida Stallion S.
in the series for colts and geldings. The bay scored in the Dr. Fager and
Affirmed divisions and entered the $350,000
In
Reality division undefeated from three career starts. Based on that record,
he was sent off the 3-5 favorite but found himself run down late by 46-1
longshot REPRIZED HALO (Halo's Image), who suddenly burst through on the rail
right before the wire to score by 1 1/2 lengths.
Reprized Halo, who dropped his initial six starts including a maiden claiming
contest two back, entered the In Reality off a 12 1/4-length trouncing of maiden
special weight rivals. He stretched out to 1 1/16 miles and finished up
in 1:50 2/5 to catapult his career earnings to $244,809.
"I always thought he was better than he was running in the afternoon by the
way he trained in the morning, but he wasn't living up to my expectations,"
trainer Manny Azpurua said. "So we took the chance running for the (maiden
claiming) tag (on September 10) hoping he would gain some confidence. After the four
races he ran before, I didn't think anybody would look at him much and they
didn't. He didn't win that day (second), but he moved forward to his good race
last time in a maiden special."
Not only was Reprized Halo testing stakes waters for the first time here, his
seven-pound apprentice jockey was also taking the plunge.
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"At first I was a little nervous, since this is my first stakes race, but I
rode him last time when he broke his maiden and Mr. Azpurua gave me confidence
that this horse would run well and that I could ride him well, also," rider Jose
Alvarez said. "I gallop him in the morning as well so I know him pretty good.
"The race didn't go according to plans because we intended to be closer to
the pace, but he didn't want to go through inside. After the field spread out a
bit, he got more confident and started to run. In the stretch, everybody drifted
wide and it was easy for him to close on the rail."
Reprized Halo now sports an 8-2-1-0 mark.
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Tannersville obscures Bim Bam as he just gets his nose in front on the wire
(Jim Lisa Photos) |
Bim Bam (Deputy Wild Cat), who ran third in all three legs of the Florida
Stallion series last year, returned to try and get a win on Festival of the Sun
day in the $75,000
Calder Derby. It wasn't to be, though, as the game sophomore was out nosed
by TANNERSVILLE (West Acre) on the wire.
"That was breathtaking!" said Henry Collazo, who saddled Tannersville to his
first stakes win. "They (Tannersville and Bim Bam) fought to the wire. I knew he
was a good horse from the first time I worked him, but I still have to keep
pinching myself to make sure it's real. He's a push-button horse and laid back,
but still goes out and puts on a performance like that.
"Bim Bam is so tough, but
he better watch out -- Tannersville is the new shooter."
"When it comes to grass racing around here, this horse is as good as there
is. He never runs a bad race on the turf," jockey Wilmer Galviz agreed. "It was
a very close finish, but when we hit the wire, I knew we won it. I won't go as
far as saying I knew before the wire, but at the wire I did."
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Tannersville, owned by Henco Inc. and Four Horsemen Stable, just got up to
stop the teletimer in 1:49 1/5 for 1 1/8 miles on the good turf. Now 9-5-0-2,
$126,015, lifetime, the bay colt's only loss from five starts on the turf came
as a third in the June 5 Lord Juban S. behind Bim Bam.
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A. J. took a trip to the winner's circle
(Jim Lisa Photos) |
Awesome Feather wasn't the only dominant filly performer on the day. Peter D.
Fuller's TRIP FOR A. J. (Trippi) grabbed the lead from the start of the $75,000
Calder Oaks one race earlier and led every step of the way in the
nine-furlong turf test. The chestnut miss finished up as jockey Eibar Coa
pleased, 5 3/4 lengths clear of her closest pursuer, while posting a final time
of 1:51.
"I am thrilled with this performance," Milton Wolfson said. "She left us
puzzled after the last start -- I couldn't believe she could run that badly
(when fourth in the September 25 Judy's Red Shoes S.). Everything worked out
perfectly for her. She had it all her own way and Coa did a beautiful job of
slowing down the pace and asking her to turn it on in the stretch."
Trip for A. J. rode a four-race win streak into the Judy's Red Shoes last
out, including scores in the Noble Robyn S., Nancy's Glitter H. and Ms Brookski
S. She boosted her earnings to $210,045 with the winner's share here and
improved her line to 10-6-0-1.
The stakes action got underway in the $64,550
Birdonthewire S., with UNO CALIENTE (Macho Uno) wiring the eight-juvenile
field by a length as the even-money favorite. Trained by Bill White, the Maruice
Miller colorbearer completed six furlongs on the main track in 1:13 1/5 with
Manoel Cruz in the pilot's seat. The bay colt vindicated his last start, when
seventh against allowance rivals after being bumped and having his jockey lose
an iron, and now boasts a 4-2-0-0, $64,392, career mark.
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Doble Jak Investments LLC's FLYING TRIP (Trippi) kept her perfect mark going
when scoring by three parts of a length in the $65,000
Cassidy
S. under Coa. Tracking the leader while five wide, the Gilberto Zerpa charge
rallied down the center of the track to finish up six furlongs in 1:13 3/5 in
the juvenile filly counterpart to the Birdonthewire. Flying Trip captured her
debut against maiden claimers before taking on starter allowance types in her
last two. The chestnut miss stepped up her game to add this one to her resume,
which stands at 4-4-0-0, $72,370.
Prior to the Calder Oaks, Farnsworth Stables' TOOCLEVERFORWORDS (Arch) ran
away in the stretch to be 2 3/4 lengths clear on the wire of the $50,000
Cinnamon Girl S. under Luis Saez. The Marty Wolfson-conditioned
four-year-old stopped the clock for a mile and 70 yards in 1:44 2/5 to improve
her record to 14-4-4-0. Fourth in her stakes debut, the Ms Brooksi, on September
4, the dark bay lass has now banked $143,028.
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