Charles Fipke’s homebred SEEKING THE TITLE (Seeking the Gold) just got up to
score a half-length victory Saturday night in the $200,000
Iowa
Oaks (G3) at Prairie Meadows. With Calvin Borel in the saddle, the Dallas
Stewart trainee tracked the early pace while saving ground on the inside, angled
out in the stretch run and pulled off the win while running 1 1/16 miles in 1:41
4/5 on the fast dirt.
Sent off the 7-1 fourth choice in the six-filly field, Seeking the Title
rewarded her backers with payouts of $17.40, $6.60 and $4 while keying the
$72.40 exacta and $232.40 trifecta (4-6-5). Harissa (Afleet Alex) ran on the
outside while stalking the pacesetting All Due Respect (Value Plus), easily got
the best of that one by five lengths on the wire, but had to settle for the
place spot. The 4-1 third pick returned $3.80 and $3.40, while 2-1 second
favorite All Due Respect paid $3 after setting early splits of :23 2/5, :46 4/5
and 1:10 4/5.
Quiet Temper (Quiet American), the 7-5 favorite, finished another 1 1/2
lengths back in fourth and was followed under the wire by Remit (Tapit) and
Shotgun Gulch (Thunder Gulch). Tap Tap Tapping (Tapit) was scratched.
Seeking the Title added a first stakes win to her resume with this score and
now boasts a 6-2-0-1, $166,548, lifetime record. The bay lass opened her career
in January, running fifth in a six-furlong maiden at Fair Grounds, but
successfully stretched out next time to dominate by 6 1/2 lengths at that same
venue. A dead-heat third in the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) almost saw the
three-year-old lass line up in the Kentucky Oaks (G1), but insufficient graded
earnings kept her on the sidelines that day. Seeking the Title lost her jockey
in the Black-Eyed Susan S. (G2) and entered this one off a troubled sixth in the
Acorn S. (G1).
The Kentucky-bred filly is the first registered foal out of the unraced Title
Seeker (Monarchos), who has since produced a juvenile filly named Ensign’s Soul
and a 2010 colt, both by Perfect Soul (Ire). Title Seeker is herself a daughter
of Hall of Famer and Broodmare of the Year Personal Ensign (Private Account), who
retired undefeated from 13 career starts. Personal Ensign’s other offspring
include four-time Grade 1 winner My Flag (Easy Goer), the dam of champion Storm
Flag Flying (Storm Cat); Grade 1-winning sires Miner’s Mark (Mr. Prospector) and
Traditionally (Mr. Prospector); and multiple Grade 1-placed sire Our Emblem (Mr.
Prospector).
Others of note in this line include multiple Argentinean champion *Dorine
(Aristophanes), Grade 1 victor and sire Personal Flag (Private Account), Grade 2
scorer Parading (Pulpit) and current dual Grade 3 winner Interactif (Broken
Vow).