Breaking on top in Sunday’s $108,400
Astarita S. (G3) at Belmont, Cobra Farms
and Castletop Stable’s SENSATION (Dixie Union) pressed the pace from the outside
before taking over after the first quarter and accelerating away from her rivals
to record her first stakes win. The Stanley Hough trainee completed 6 1/2
furlongs over the fast Elmont, New York, oval in 1:16 4/5.
With jockey Eibar Coa in the irons, Sensation chased Saoirse Cat (Storm Cat)
through an opening quarter-mile in :22. The bay miss took over the lead when
asked, and was a half-length clear after a half-mile in :45 1/5. From there the
winner drew away, up by five lengths after six furlongs in 1:10 1/5 and in front
by 5 1/2 at the wire. Swap Fliparoo (Exchange Rate) was the best of the rest,
with Unobstructed View (Yes it’s True) finishing five lengths back in third.
Sensation returned $6, $3.60 and $2.60 as the 2-1 post-time favorite,
starting the $53 exacta with 12-1 longshot Swap Fliparoo, who gave back $8.80
and $3.80. Second-choice Unobstructed View was worth $2.80 to show on the bottom
of the $135 trifecta. Next came Saoirse Cat, Fast Deal (Grand Slam) and Sleeping
(Forest Camp).
“She went great,” said Hough. “We’ll have to see what we’re going to do. We
may try her long. We’ll check out how the other races go. I though she ran great
today. In the Spinaway (S. [G2]), it was her third race in a row. We were
debating whether to run there or in the Matron. She was doing good and she had
won over the track, so we though it was the ting to do. We have freshened her up
now. We though we would use this race and see how the others go.”
Bred in Kentucky by Hermitage Farm LLC, Sensation is out of the winning Mr.
Prospector mare Ryn and counts herself a half-sister to an unnamed yearling colt by
Dynaformer and a weanling colt by War Chant. The $475,000 Keeneland September
yearling purchase recorded her first stakes win after finishing fourth in the Spinaway last out, and her line now reads 4-3-0-0, $131,540.