The margin of victory was narrower than five weeks ago in the Valley View (G3) at Keeneland, but Lovely Bernadette again got the jump on Journey Home in Saturday’s $200,000 Mrs. Revere (G2) at Churchill Downs and held off that determined rival to post a half-length victory.
A stalking second to outsider Marina’s Legacy, through fractions of :24.55 and :50.92 on the yielding turf, Lovely Bernadette took a narrow lead through six furlongs in 1:16.70, opened up a length in mid-stretch, and resisted a final surge from Journey Home and 11-10 favorite Daddys Lil Darling under Florent Geroux.
Owned by James Miller and trained by Jim DiVito, second choice Lovely Bernadette returned $9.80 after completing 1 1/16 miles in 1:47.02. Journey Home edged Daddys Lil Darling by a neck for the place. The order of finish was rounded out by I’m Betty G, Fault, Wesit, Proud Reunion, Tamit, Oh So Terrible, and Marina’s Legacy.
A three-time winner on dirt at two, including the $80,000 Rags to Riches, four straight unplaced efforts thereafter prompted a switch to grass for a June 8 allowance at Churchill, which Lovely Bernadette won by 1 1/2 lengths. Third in the $100,000 Ta Wee and in the Pucker Up (G3) in her next two starts, Lovely Bernadette preceded this with a 1 1/2-length tally in the $200,000 Indiana Grand and the aforementioned win in the Valley View by the same margin. Her record now stands at 14-7-0-3, $508,530.
“She’s gotten the absolute perfect trip in her last three starts,” DiVito said. “They were going a slower pace up front today but Flo had her in a perfect spot. Once I saw the half-mile split in :50 I knew she’d have plenty left for when they turned for home.
“The sky is the limit for this horse. She’s shown us how talented she is on the grass and I think she’ll just keep getting better with age.”
Bred in Kentucky by David Hager II, Lovely Bernadette was a $28,000 OBS two-year-old purchase. She was produced by Inlovewithlove, by Bernstein.
