Grantley Acres’ homebred Her Laugh made all the running in Saturday’s $100,000 Untapable S. at Fair Grounds, scoring by 2 1/2 lengths in the Road to the Kentucky Oaks qualifier. A rallying upset winner when making her career debut at six furlongs, Her Laugh thrived on the stretch out to two turns in the mile and 70-yard event. Axel Concepcion was up for Whit Beckman on the Practical Joke filly.
Her Laugh broke on top and rattled off early splits in :24.63, :49, and 1:13.95 while extending her margin at every pole. She opened up by about five lengths in midstretch before being taken under wraps late, stopping the teletimer in 1:43.72.
“I told Axel just break and put her where she is comfortable,” Beckman said. “Seeing the fractions, how she was carrying him and how composed she was, I knew we were in the best spot. It was perfect. This day worked out very well.”
Beckman and Concepcion also teamed up to win the six-furlong Letellier Memorial S. for two-year-old fillies earlier on the program with first-time starter Simply Joking. Both are campaigned by Grantley Acres, and Her Laugh opted for the Untapable after being cross entered to the Letellier.
“(Her Laugh) broke good, relaxed very well,” Concepcion said. “I asked at the quarter pole and she responded. I knew she had a lot of talent from working her since she was in Kentucky three months ago. She did it all and I am very grateful for the owners and the trainer for the opportunity.”
Off as the 9-2 second choice, Her Laugh was overlooked at 29-1 in her career debut and prevailed by a head at Churchill Downs on Nov. 17.
Golden Gamble, the 11-10 favorite, raced greenly through the stretch while closing from off the pace and wound up a clear second, 2 1/2 lengths clear of California Sunset in third. Stable Currency, Drexel Hill, Amarth, Paris Lily, and Prima Bella completed the order of finish.
The Untapable awarded points on a 10-5-3-2-1 scale to the top five finishers toward a berth in the Kentucky Oaks (G1) next spring.
The first foal from the winning Point of Entry mare Truth Goddess, Kentucky-bred Her Laugh hails from a stamina-laced female family.
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