Broken Sword is sharp in Bayakoa triumph

Broken Sword was the easiest of winners in the Bayakoa (Benoit Photos) Broken Sword took command of Saturday’s Grade 2, $151,000 Bayakoa Handicap at Hollywood Park from the onset and never looked back in her second straight wire job. Previously the Jerry Hollendorfer trainee led gate-to-wire in an optional claimer at Golden Gate Fields, but the bay filly graduated to the big leagues when finishing 1 1/16 miles over the Cushion Track in 1:42 4/5 on Saturday. Broken Sword lulled her Bayakoa rivals into a false sense of security while under a snug hold from jockey Joel Rosario. The sophomore daughter of Broken Vow set splits of :23 1/5, :46 2/5, 1:11 2/5 and 1:36 2/5 while maintaining a sizeable margin over her nearest pursuers on the backstretch. Entering the stretch, the bay lass was still going strong and had more than enough to withstand the late run from even-money favorite Fiftyshadesofhay to score by 4 1/4 lengths. “I thought I was going to be in front — I knew she had speed,” Rosaio said. “I tried to take the lead because I know she likes to run like that. I knew it was a tough race, but hopefully we had something left turning for home. “She really did it easy. She was pinning her ears back and forth. I was very comfortable turning for home and I thought we had a pretty good chance to win.” Campaigned by Mark Dedomenico LLC, Hollendorfer and George Todaro, Broken Sword was sent off the 7-1 fourth choice and returned $17.80 for the win.

“I didn’t think we’d be out there on an easy lead like that,” Hollendorfer
admitted. “I
think (Fiftyshadesofhay) had some trouble on the break. That may have
contributed to our win.”

Fiftyshadesofhay suffered trouble throughout the race and came flying down the
stretch once she and jockey Martin Garcia finally got clear. It was too little,
too late, though, to give trainer Bob Baffert a stakes double following
Streaming’s Hollywood Starlet victory earlier on the card.

“She just broke
bad,” jockey Martin Garcia lamented about Fiftyshadesofhay’s trip. “She was a little nervous in the gate. The stumble just got me. All I could
do was try to make my run, but it was too late. I don’t know if we were going to
beat the winner anyway. She was going pretty fast up there.”

“She was acting up
in the gate a little bit. She just wasn’t standing right,” Baffert noted. “She’s a little
immature and she gets a little excited. She got shuffled all the way back and
just had to make up too much. It’s just bad luck. She ran well though. I’m
surprised she ran second, as far back as she was.”

Warren’s Veneda was another 5 1/2 lengths behind in third, while Champagneandcaviar completed the top four under the wire. Curvy Cat just missed
the superfecta by a head and was followed by Spellbound, Magic Union, Charm the
Maker and Charlie Em. Customer Base was withdrawn.

Broken Sword was actually making her second stakes start in this spot, which
improved her resume to read 8-3-0-3 and increased her bankroll to $156,660. The
filly made her racing debut in July 2012 at Pleasanton and was an impressive
first-out winner with an 11-length score in the Juan Gonzalez Memorial on dirt.
She wouldn’t be seen in competition again until showing up for her sophomore bow
on April 28 at Golden Gate Fields, where she finished a neck third against
optional claiming company.

Broken Sword continued running against those types of horses for her next
three starts. She was fifth and third in her next two over Hollywood’s turf,
then switched to Del Mar’s green to fill the fifth spot yet again on August 21.
Another third followed on the grass, this time in an allowance at Golden Gate
Fields, before she returned to the winner’s circle in her last effort on that
track’s synthetic Tapeta.

“When this filly broke her maiden, we thought she could
be any kind of horse, then she didn’t do what we wanted her to do right away.
Now she is. Sometimes they just turn around,” Hollendorfer remarked.

Bred in Kentucky by SF Bloodstock LLC, Broken Sword has been purchased at
auction twice. She brought $20,000 as a Keeneland September yearling prior to
being bought for $60,000 from a 2012 February sale conducted by the North
American Thoroughbred Horse Company and Pegasus Equine Rehabilitation & Training
Center.

Broken Sword is out of the Volksraad mare Katana, who was named New Zealand’s
2003 highweight filly at two. Katana is a half-sister to the dam of dual Group 3-placed listed winner
and fellow Volksraad-sired Smitten Kitten. Broken
Sword’s fourth dam is Dreamy Jeannie, who is the grandam of multiple Australian
and New Zealand highweight and champion Mr. Tiz.

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