Joyful Victory flies home in Honeybee

Joyful Victory romped while making her seasonal bow in the Honeybee (Oaklawn Park/Coady Photography) Fox Hill Farms’ JOYFUL VICTORY (Tapit) was content to track behind the early pace in Saturday’s $125,000 Honeybee S. (G3) at Oaklawn Park, but asserted her superiority in the stretch of the 1 1/16-mile test. Coming wide around the turn, the gray lass quickly took command and easily drew off to be 8 3/4 lengths clear on the wire while stopping the clock in 1:44 4/5 in her three-year-old bow. Joyful Victory settled into fifth under jockey Mike Smith for the opening half-mile as Rigoletta (Concerto) set splits of :22 3/5 and :45 4/5 while pressured the entire time by Norma’s Dream (Awesome Again). Ranging up three wide while rounding the turn, Joyful Victory simply took over and was ridden out to the wire as the 3-2 favorite. The gray filly paid $5, $3.40 and $2.60 for her score, with last-out Martha Washington S. victress Holy Heavens (Holy Bull) easily best of the rest in second. It was another three lengths back to Dixie City (Dixie Union), who returned here off a win in the November 27 Demoiselle S. (G2). Salty Strike (Smart Strike), Jazzin’ Okie (Candy Ride [Arg]), Rigoletta and Norma’s Dream completed the order under the wire after Hearts on Fire (Lion Heart) and Summer Soiree (War Front) were withdrawn.

Joyful Victory earned only her second career win when taking the Honeybee.
While under the tutelage of trainer Tony Dutrow she broke her maiden at first
asking in September, then posted a third-place run in the Frizette S. (G1) one
month later. The filly took on the Breeders’ Cup in only her third lifetime
start and finished a decent fifth in the Juvenile Fillies (G1) to close out her
two-year-old campaign. Since that race, Joyful Victory has taken up residence in
conditioner Larry Jones’ shedrow and gave her new barn a fourth consecutive
Honeybee win following the exploits of Eight Belles (2008), Just Jenda (2009)
and No Such Word (Canadian Frontier) (2010).

Joyful Victory has passed through the sales ring twice, bringing $60,000 as a
Keeneland January yearling and $400,000 as a Fasig-Tipton February two-year-old.
She’s now earned about half of her Fasig-Tipton purchase price back, boastings
$200,100 in earnings to go along with a 4-2-0-1 career mark.

The gray sophomore is the first stakes scorer out of the winning Wild Again
mare Wild Lucy Black, who has since produced a juvenile filly named Why Lucy Why
(Whywhywhy). Joyful Victory’s third dam is Black Eyed Lucy (*Prince Royal II),
who is best known for foaling 1982 champion two-year-old colt Roving Boy (Olden
Times) as well as the unraced Sally’s Ride (Inverness Drive), herself the dam of
dual Grade 1 heroine A Wild Ride (Wild Again).

This is the same family as Grade 2 victress Irguns Angel (Irgun) and Canadian
Grade 3 winner Artie Hot (Black Minnaloushe).