Qushchi quickens best in Waya; Soiree seizes chance to Shine

Qushchi quickens best in Waya; Soiree seizes chance to

Shine

"That was vintage Edgar today," Motion said. "He waited as long as he could.

She ran a powerful race."

"It looked like there were a couple of horses with speed," Prado recapped,

"and they tried to slow it down but they went on, and it made my job easier. I

was able to break and get outside and let her do something the first part of the

race. I felt very comfortable going down the backside, like at the seven-eighths

pole, when my filly was getting closer and closer very effortlessly.

"At that point, I was very happy and saying, 'Let me find a clear path, turn

her loose and see what I got.' She kicked it in pretty strong. She went right

on. The way she was moving around the turn, I was feeling pretty comfortable."

Anjaz, who was bottled up for a time, shook free to regain second by a length

from Mystical Star. Angel Terrace, Beijoca, the hampered Kissable and Team

rounded out the order under the wire.

Originally trained by William Jarvis in England, Qushchi captured a Newmarket

maiden as a juvenile. At three, the daughter of Encosta de Lago was third to

Brown Panther in a Haydock handicap before going on to win a handicap at

Doncaster and another at Newmarket. Qushchi found her job much tougher last

season as a four-year-old, when she managed to place only once from 11 starts.

Her official rating was high enough to make her carry more weight in handicaps,

thus rendering her less competitive at that level. But when she raised her

sights to stakes, she was well beaten in all of her attempts.

A transfer to the United States has eased her task considerably this year.

Qushchi placed in a pair of allowances at Gulfstream Park before stepping up to

the April 25 Bewitch at Keeneland, where she was a fine third to stablemate

Strathnaver. Next in the Keertana, she came up a head short to Treasured Up, who

came right back to take the off-the-turf Robert G. Dick Memorial.

"She has improved a lot since we had her," Motion observed.

"I think she had been a little unlucky. She was just nailed right on the wire

at Churchill last time. She actually was interfered with by my other filly,

Strathnaver, at Keeneland.

"We'll think about the Glens Falls (on September 2), but it might be a little

quick," the trainer added.

Bred by Avington Manor Stud in Great Britain, Qushchi is out of multiple

stakes heroine and Group 3-placed La Persiana, a Daylami mare who is a

half-sister to English highweight and sire Grand Lodge.

One race earlier, Holiday Soiree rolled to a convincing, 3 3/4-length victory

in the $98,000

Shine

Again Stakes in her debut for Glencrest Farm and trainer Todd Pletcher. Her

first stakes win came exactly three weeks after she was purchased for $370,000

at Fasig-Tipton's Summer Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale.

The six-furlong Shine Again was restricted to distaffers who had never won a

sweepstakes, and Holiday Soiree was overdue. The Harlan's Holiday filly had

previously placed in five stakes, including a third in the May 4 Humana Distaff

on Kentucky Derby Day. She was fourth in another Grade 1, the July 6 Princess

Rooney Handicap, in her final outing for trainer Tevis McCauley.

With John Velazquez aboard, Holiday Soiree stalked a lively pace in fourth.

Up front, Five Star Momma blitzed through fractions of :22 2/5 and :45 1/5 while

being hounded by Well Kept, and Delightful Quality chased in third. Holiday

Soiree loomed to join the leaders leaving the turn and kicked clear in the

stretch, pulling away to stop the teletimer in a brisk 1:08 4/5 on the fast

track.

"We ended up having a perfect trip," Velazquez said of the 2-1 second choice.

"I stalked those two horses on the lead. It was kind of easy, and then by the

quarter-pole I asked my horse to start running and she responded right away."

"We got the pace setup that we figured," Pletcher said. "We sat a good trip

and she really ran super. It's the first time we've run her; we've only had her

a short period of time. She's trained really well since we had her. I'm very

pleased with the way she did it.

"She's a straightforward, professional filly, a little aggressive to gallop.

We worked her one time and she worked lights out (a bullet half-mile in :48 2/5

last Tuesday), so we were just happy to find a nice spot for her."

Delightful Quality, who tried to thread the needle on the rail only to steady

and get shuffled back, peeled to the outside and got up for second. Five Star

Momma boxed on to salvage third from Well Kept, and 7-5 favorite Apropos brought

up the rear in a close fifth.

Holiday Soiree's scorecard now stands at 18-5-4-2, $390,642. Bred by Brereton

C. Jones in Kentucky, she RNA'd for $40,000 as a Keeneland September yearling.

The four-year-old was produced by the multiple stakes-placed Include mare Try to

Remember.

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