Jockey Miguel Mena only had two winners during Arlington Park’s International Festival of Racing on Saturday, but both of those proved to be quite lucrative at the windows.
Agave Racing Stable’s Fault saved ground on the rail in midpack of the $100,000 Pucker Up Stakes (G3) before rallying in the stretch to score a neck victory as the 12-1 seventh choice in the 12-filly field.
Royalty Princess led the way through splits of :22.99, :49.04 and 1:13.80, but the 94-1 shot faded to last as the rest of the field converged on the turn. Fault found herself trapped down on the inside rounding the bend, but Mena didn’t panic, waiting for the pack to separate heading into the lane.
When an opening emerged, Mena sent Fault through and the sophomore miss flew on the outside to wrest away command and pull off the neck upset. She finished about 1 1/8 miles over the firm turf in 1:50.08 to pay $26.40.
Journey Home followed in second, 2 3/4 lengths up on Lovely Bernadette in third. It was another neck back to Canny in fourth, who had a half-length to spare on Princess La Quinta. Dontmesswithjoanne just missed fifth by a head. Finishing the order under the wire were Sensitive, Lipstick City, Happy Mesa, Katinka, Mo’s M V P and Royalty Princess.
Fault was making her fourth start for new trainer Michelle Lovell in this spot after beginning her career with conditioner Al Stall Jr. She broke her maiden on January 21 over Fair Grounds’ muddy, sealed main track for Stall, but was well-beaten in her next two and wound up in a $50,000 claimer at Churchill Downs on May 3.
Fault was claimed out of that that turf affair, which she won by 3 1/4 lengths, and proceeded to finish second in her next three races. The Blame filly entered the Pucker Up off one of those runner-up performances, a neck second in the TaWee Stakes on July 20 at Indiana Grand, and boosted her scorecard to 9-3-3-1, $142,595, in this one.
Bred in Kentucky by Claiborne Farm, Fault is out of the stakes-winning Horse Chestnut mare Charming N Lovable, making her a half-sister to Grade 3 runner-up Betweenhereandcool and stakes-placed Congenial.
Charming N Lovable is herself a half-sister to Grade 2 winner Mananan McLir, stakes victor Big Sur and the dam of Grade 2 heroine Fioretti. This is the female family of champions Quill, Awesome Feather and Run the Gantlet.
Earlier on Arlington’s Million Day card, Harmac proved best as the 27-1 longest shot in the $75,000 Bruce D. Memorial Stakes under Mena’s patient handling.
Mena had to wait as Harmac found himself blocked behind a wall of horses at the quarter-pole. The duo swung wide and closed fast to get the 1 3/4-length score while finishing a mile on the Polytrack in 1:36.10.
Trained by Grant Forster for owner/breeder Elizabeth Southam, Harmac paid $56.40 for capturing his stakes debut. The Langfuhr gelding earned his initial win against maiden claimers at Churchill Downs on May 26 and entered this contest off an allowance victory at Ellis Park going a mile.
Harmac improved his career record to 6-3-0-0 and doubled his lifetime earnings to $88,098.
