Last seen making history in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1), Sharing returned triumphant in a stakes honoring another Breeders’ Cup star, Saturday’s $100,000 Tepin S. at Churchill Downs. The 2.30-1 second choice worked out an outside stalking trip with Manny Franco and punched clear in the stretch to extend her winning streak to four. Alms, the 17-10 favorite, suffered her first loss in fifth.
Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gainesway Stable’s Sharing was scoring over the same course as her dam, Shared Account, did in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1). Likewise trained by Graham Motion, Sharing broke through at the stakes level faster than her dam, winning last fall’s Selima at Laurel en route to the Breeders’ Cup. That’s likely due to the influence of her sire, 2004 Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) champion Speightstown.
Sharing was well placed in fourth early, just a couple of lengths off pacesetter In Good Spirits through splits of :24.16 and :48.39 on the firm turf. Outburst attended in second, with Walk in Marrakesh buried on the hedge behind the leader. Sharing crept into third at the 6-furlong mark in 1:12.33, and despite In Good Spirits’ gamely digging in upon straightening, rolled past by midstretch.
Runner-up Abscond, seventh to Sharing in the Breeders’ Cup, rallied to cut the deficit to a half-length at the wire. Pass the Plate closed from farther back to snatch third from In Good Spirits by a head.
Alms, who broke from post 12 of 13, was perched one spot behind Sharing early but lacked her usual kick in fifth. Next came Dominga; Walk in Marrakesh, who might have been a bit intimidated without daylight on the inside; Moral Reasoning; Jezebel’s Kitten; Queen of God; Outburst; Eve of War, the also-eligible who appeared rank when widest of all early; and Oxum Power. Heir of Light and Hendy Woods were scratched.
Last seen winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, #9 Sharing takes the inaugural Tepin Stakes for @GrahamMotion at @ChurchillDowns pic.twitter.com/m0vLQpPi1o
— TwinSpires (@TwinSpires) May 23, 2020
Sharing has now earned $787,340 from her 5-4-0-1 line. The $350,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling was bred by Sagamore Farm in Maryland.
Perfect since her near-miss debut in a Saratoga turf sprint, Sharing romped in an off-the-turf maiden at the Spa. Her surface versatility led Motion to mention a possible switch back to dirt for the Kentucky Oaks (G1) over the winter, but he then decided to stick to turf for the time being. A Royal Ascot tilt for the Coronation S. (G1) was also discussed until the pandemic made logistics more challenging.
Sharing clocked the mile in 1:36.26 in optimal conditions. In contrast, the companion $100,000 War Chant was contested amid a driving rainstorm at the conclusion of the card, and Smooth Like Strait finished in 1:36.77. The Santa Anita shipper had already blown the race apart by the top of the stretch and won geared down by Hall of Famer John Velazquez.
Sent off at 5-1, the Mike McCarthy trainee vied with Island Commish through fractions of :23.90, :48.24, and 1:12.33 on a course still labeled firm. The two turned it into a match race until Smooth Like Strait put his rival away and strolled home by 1 3/4 lengths.
#9 Smooth Like Strait runs away with the War Chant at @ChurchillDowns for Michael McCarthy under @ljlmvel pic.twitter.com/3MgJshsHis
— TwinSpires (@TwinSpires) May 23, 2020
Pixelate and 3-1 favorite Field Pass, who broke slowly, gained ground inside the final sixteenth for second and third, respectively. Hieronymus, third in the opening stages, wound up fourth. South Bend, Shared Sense, Street Ready, Fenwick Station, Bama Breeze, Bodecream, Billy Batts, a weakening Island Commish, and Liam’s Pride rounded out the order of finish. Vanzzy was withdrawn along with the also-eligible Natural Power.
A Cannon Thoroughbreds homebred, Smooth Like Strait was notching his second stakes victory. The Midnight Lute colt wired the Dec. 1 Cecil B. DeMille (G3) at Del Mar and had since finished fourth in the Eddie Logan and second in the Feb. 29 Pasadena. His resume reads 7-3-1-1, $178,323.
