One week after blitzing female rivals in the De La Rose, Got Stormy continued her ascension in the turf ranks and established a new course record posting a spectacular victory over males in Saturday’s $500,000 Fourstardave H. (G1) at Saratoga. The four-year-old filly rallied boldly to win going away by 2 ½ lengths under new jockey Ricardo Santana Jr. and stopped the teletimer in 1:32 over the inner turf course.
“We came back and ran her a week later, which doesn’t happen very often, but she’s turned into a super filly,” trainer Mark Casse said. “I was fortunate to train another filly years ago in Tepin, who won the Breeders’ Cup (Mile) and then was second (the next year). I told (co-owner) Gary (Barber) early in the year that she was our next Tepin. It’s nice sometimes when you’re right. She’s amazing.”
Campaigned by Barber and Southern Equine Stable, the Got Stormy notched her fifth stakes win and first U.S. graded win. She rated in midpack, more than 10 lengths off the early pace, as Gidu took off from the starting gate and sprinted as fast as he could through opening splits in :22.65 and :44.61. The pacesetter led by about 10 lengths entering the far turn but by the time Gidu had reached the three-quarters mark in 1:08.36, the early exertion had begun to take a toll.
Got Stormy began gathering steam rounding the far turn and accelerated into the stretch full of run. After briefly engaging Made You Look, who took over from a tiring Gidu, Got Stormy forged past and drew off impressively in deep stretch.
“She’s a nice filly,” Santana said. “Mr. Casse told me that he had a really good shot for me this weekend and he believed in this filly and she ran such a big race. She’s a monster. I had plenty of horse at the sixteenth pole I wanted to make sure she opened up so when I passed first I made sure she was on her game. She really ran a big race.”
“It’s all about Gary Barber,” Casse said of the decision to wheel back on short rest. “I told him why we shouldn’t run her. He said, ‘That’s good, but are you happy with how she is training?’ I said ‘Honestly, I’ve never seen her train so good’ and he said ‘We’re running.’ I wish I could say I was the smart one, but it was Gary Barber. He’s not afraid to step out of the box.”
A Kentucky-bred daughter of Get Stormy, who captured the 2010 Fourstardave, Got Stormy stamped her Breeders’ Cup Mile ticket winning the “Win & You’re In” race.
She left the starting gate as the 5-1 third choice among 10 runners. Raging Bull, the 5-2 second choice, rallied from late for second, a head better than the Grade 1-winning mare and 9-5 favorite Uni, who closed belatedly as well. It was another head to 11-1 March to the Arch in fourth and next came Made You Look, Hembree, Dr. Edgar, Krampus, Gidu and Ostillio.
Bred by Mt. Joy Stables, Pope McLean, Pope McLean Jr. and Marc McLean, Got Stormy is the first stakes winner out of the Malabar Gold mare Super Phoebe, a half-sister to multiple Grade 2-winning millionaire Smooth Air. Got Stormy was purchased for $45,000 at the 2017 Fasig-Tipton Maryland May two-year-old sale.
