Sara Louise takes Victory Ride in comeback

Sara Louise romped in her return (Harold Roth/Horsephotos.com) SARA LOUISE (Malibu Moon) circled the dueling front runners in Saturday’s $110,000 Victory Ride S. (G3) at Saratoga and pulled away over the sloppy track to record a two-length win in her first race since running second to Rachel Alexandra (Medaglia d’Oro) in the November 29 Golden Rod S. (G2). She was also making her first start in this spot for trainer Saeed bin Suroor and Godolphin Stables, who purchased the bay lass following the Golden Rod and sent her to winter in Dubai. The sophomore finished up the six furlongs of the Victory Ride in 1:09 3/5 with jockey Edgar Prado in the irons. “When she was in Dubai, she had tiny problems,” bin Suroor explained on the late return. “She had tendon problems in both of her front legs. We gave her time. The filly was doing really well. She was working well. “I talked to Edgar and he said she can go a mile. The filly has class. (The sloppy track) was a question mark before the race. We couldn’t wait too long until September. She needed the race and she’ll improve from this race. We’ll have to wait on (the possibility of another meeting with Rachel Alexandra). She’s in a different class now. Our filly beat her before. We’ll have to wait until the right time.”

Sara Louise broke well from her far outside 9 post and settled into a wide
stalking position in the second flight of runners. Up front, Bold Union (Dixie
Union) was setting splits of :21 4/5, :44 4/5 and :56 4/5 while pressured on the
outside by Juliet’s Spirit (Exchange Rate). Those two continued to battled it
out rounding the turn, but Sara Louise had joined the melee by this point.
Racing in tandem with those two for a brief moment exiting the turn, the
three-year-old filly began drawing away in midstretch and vindicated her 2-1
favoritism to pay $6.30, $3.70 and $3.30 while keying the $25.80 exacta and
$271.50 trifecta (8-1-5).

Bold Union held Juliet’s Spirit by a half-length on the wire, returning $4
and $2.90 for her game front-running effort as the 7-2 co-third choice. Juliet’s
Spirit easily retained third by 1 3/4 lengths over Sky Haven (Sky Mesa), who
rallied from the back, and was worth $8.30 as the 18-1 longest shot on the
board. Trix in the City (Friends Lake) followed Sky Haven under the line, while
All of Her Twist (Forest Wildcat), Step Out Smartly (Came Home), Selva (Forest
Wildcat) and Reforestation (Forestry) completed the order of finish.

Sara Louise’s only off-the-board placing came as a fourth when she made her
career debut in a Saratoga maiden last August. The bay filly took her first race
next out at Belmont Park, then handed Rachel Alexandra her last defeat when
holding that one to second in the Pocahontas S. (G3) at Churchill Downs. She
concluded her juvenile campaign with a second to Rachel Alexandra in the Golden
Rod, and now boasts a 5-3-1-0 career mark to go along with $199,635 in lifetime
earnings.

Bred in Kentucky by Paul F. Gardner, Sara Louise passed through the sales
ring twice, bringing $180,000 as a Fasig-Tipton July yearling and $550,000 as a
Fasig-Tipton February two-year-old. She is out of the Grade 3-placed Kings Lynn
(Mt. Livermore) and is a half-sister to multiple Mexican stakes winner Jacobino
(Deputy Commander), an unnamed yearling filly by Five Star Day and a 2009 Sharp
Humor filly. Kings Lynn is herself a daughter of Grade 3 victress Til Forbid (Temperence
Hill), who placed in the 1991 Kentucky Oaks (G1), Alabama S. (G1), Ashland S.
(G1) and Spinster S. (G1).

Til Forbid also produced Grade 3 heroine Scoop (Gone West), herself the dam
of multiple Grade 3-placed stakes victress Coolwind (Forest Wildcat), and this
is the same family as Grade 2 scorer Softly (Binalong) as well as Grade 3
winners Hold Old Blue (Seattle Song) and Coragil Cat (Forest Wildcat).