Dayatthespa flies home in Sweetest Chant

Dayatthespa skimmed over the turf to take the Sweetest Chant (Adam Coglianese Photography)

Dayatthespa came with a powerful rally in midstretch to run away with the $100,000
Sweetest Chant Stakes on Gulfstream Park’s firm turf Sunday. The Chad Brown-trained
sophomore miss was sent off the 7-5 favorite and easily blew past her seven
rivals to finish the one-mile contest in 1:34 2/5.

Ready Signal set the pace in the Sweetest Chant through splits of :23, :47
and 1:10 4/5 while closely tracked by Awesome Belle to her outside. Frolic’s
Revenge and Slew’s Exchange followed in the second flight, with Wholelottashakin
and Ann of the Dance farther back in the strung-out field. Dayatthespa,
meanwhile, was biding her time in the rear of the group.

Ready Signal still held the lead heading into the stretch, but was quickly
swallowed up as the late runners began their moves. Quickest of all was
Dayatthespa, who poured it on while running down the center of the course. The chestnut
miss flew over the grass with jockey Javier Castellano in the irons for the
first time, returning $4.80, $3.20 and $2.40 to her faithful backers.

“I expected to be much closer to the pace, but she broke just a step
slow today. Fortunately, they went much faster up front than I expected.
She settled beautifully and when I asked her, she picked it up really
quickly,” Castellano said. “I had no choice but to go around horses on
the turn and to go a little wide. I was really satisfied with how she
ran today and I think she’s a really nice filly.”

Dayatthespa and jockey Javier Castellano teamed up for the first time to win the Sweetest Chant (Adam Coglianese Photography)

Wholelottashakin followed behind Dayatthespa by 1 3/4 lengths while holding
Frolic’s Revenge to third by 2 1/4 lengths. Sisterhood came from last to take
fourth, with Ann of the Dance, Ready Signal, Slew’s Exchange and Awesome Belle
completing the order under the wire. Italian Rose and main-track only entrant
Dancing Solo were both scratched.

Campaigned by Jerry and Ronald Frankel, Steve Laymon and Bradley
Thoroughbreds, Dayatthespa broke her maiden in equally impressive fashion on August 4,
circling the turn wide before taking command in the lane and easily drawing off
to score by four lengths at Saratoga. She shipped north of the border and faced winners for
the first time in the Grade 3 Natalma Stakes next out, just getting caught on
the wire to finish second in that eight-furlong Woodbine contest.

Dayatthespa was given a shot in the Breeders’ Cup, but
the rain-affected grass may have compromised the City Zip filly and she
tired to ninth after being forwardly placed early on in the Juvenile Fillies
Turf. Getting back on the
winning track in this one, the newly turned three-year-old improved her line to
read 4-2-1-0 and doubled her earnings to $124,892.