27-1 longshot Perfect Shirl surprises in Filly & Mare Turf

Attfield was celebrating his second major triumph in three weeks. On October

16, he recorded a long overdue first win in the Grade 1 E.P. Taylor, courtesy of

Miss Keller. Ironically, Perfect Shirl was also headed to that race, but given

her disdain for soft turf, Attfield ended up changing plans. She skipped the

Woodbine feature and set her sights on the Breeders' Cup. 

There was drama even prior to the start. The Andre Fabre-trained Announce

collided with the rail approaching the gate and sustained a laceration to her

right hind leg. She was scratched by order of the track veterinarian, to the

consternation of jockey Maxime Guyon.

When the gate opened, Aidan O'Brien's Misty for Me stumbled out of her far

outside post 11 and found herself well back. Up front, Dubawi Heights secured

the lead and established splits of :25 2/5, :51 and 1:16 4/5. Dynaslew, who had

set up in a stalking position, put her head in front through a mile in 1:41 3/5.

Stacelita looked perfectly placed in third, just awaiting the right time to

deploy.

Leaving the final turn, however, the picture changed. Stacelita was buried on

the inside, but failed to pick up even once she had room. Instead, Nahrain and

defending champion Shared Account, who sprang a 46-1 shocker here last year,

launched bold moves.

Nahrain inched away to a one-length lead in midstretch. Then Perfect Shirl,

who had been steadily advancing, burst from the pack to strike the front. After

completing 1 3/8 miles on Churchill Downs' good turf in 2:18 3/5, the unheralded

winner returned $57.60, $18.60 and $11.60.

Stacelita's connections were mystified by her effort.

"I can't really say much because I haven't seen the replay," trainer Chad

Brown said. "All I know is that Ramon (jockey Dominguez) said he had horse and

then he didn't."

"Around the three-eighths pole I was very happy because she was still taking

it in," Dominguez said. "I was inside, then angled towards the outside, looking

for room, but (when I found room) there was nothing there.

"The fractions were slow and everybody was under a hold. I was happy with the

way she was handling herself. Turning for home she just didn't have the response

I was looking for. She just didn't find her best stride today. I can't say it

was the course." 

The veterinarians were concerned by the appearance of the trailing Dynaslew,

who was exhibiting signs of possible lameness. She was loaded onto the track

ambulance as a precaution, according to Dr. C. Wayne McIlwraith, the on-call

veterinarian for the American Association of Equine Practitioners

"They've told us that she was either mildly lame or she was -- or she acted

mildly lame, but it could be just fatigue," McIlwraith said. "As a precaution,

she was loaded onto the ambulance and taken back. We have no further information

at this stage, but she walked onto the ambulance fine."

McIlwraith also commented on the gate scratch of Announce, who was a 6-1

chance at the time of her incident.

"Announce started acting up approaching the gate," the veterinarian said.

"The jockey had trouble controlling her, and she ran into the rail and sustained

a mild laceration to the right hind limb. She has since been examined back at

the barn, and it's a small laceration over the hock, the right hock. She'll be

fine."

McIlwraith was asked about Guyon's reaction to the decision, and whether a

jockey's input would be consulted.

"I wouldn't say it's 100 percent (based on the veterinarian alone), but

there's no time to discuss it," McIlwraith said. "She did have a laceration,

which means it wouldn't be humane or absolutely safe to start the filly. So she

had to be scratched."

Perfect Shirl's landmark score boosted her bankroll to $1,390,729 from her

15-4-2-5 record. Her previous career high came in the Grade 2 Lake George at

Saratoga in 2010. Winless since then, she had placed third in last summer's

Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks, the Grade 3 Matchmaker on July 31 and the August 20 Belle

Mahone, and she was coming off a strong second in the Grade 2 Canadian on

September 18.

The Kentucky-bred four-year-old is out of Grade 1 heroine Lady Shirl, making

her a half-sister to multiple Grade 1 star and promising young sire Shakespeare;

Grade 2 queen Lady Shakespeare; and Grade 2-placed stakes winner Fantastic Shirl,

the dam of Saturday's Juvenile Turf entrant Fantastic Song.