Raven Run (Grade 2)- $350.000 Purse
KEE- For Fillies Three Years Old
Seven Furlongs on the Dirt
October 21, 2023
It came down to the wire, and a tight photo for the stewards to look at closely between Smokin Cara and Shadow State, but in the end, it would be Smokin Cara getting the head bob at the very last moment in order to prevail in the Raven Run. Like she typically does, she came from behind and closed brilliantly, providing another example of closers being able to pick up wins in big races. This three-year-old filly by Smokin Luka is trained by Alydar Stables and he earns his first win in the race. The winning jockey is G W Corbett, who made the trip east from TUP worthwhile in also earning his first Raven Run trophy. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:21.87, which is one of the quickest winning times of the race. Let’s take a look at it!
(1/4 Mile- :22.75)- Out front at the start of the race, it’s Queen Evade Party for Maxmillion Farm, who prevails in an early battle with TwinTowersRacing’s Loud Mouth to lead by a length. Loud Mouth is fine to run second here to her outside. Stalking these two front runners are both Lysistrata, from Royalty Stables, and massive longshot Tarte Aux Pommes, from Jerry Garcia Racing. Smokey Stover’s Shadow State runs in the middle of the field with the post time favorite from Mb Stables, Points Of Grace to her inside. It’s another length to The Freakshow’s Wyldewood. At the back of the pack, we have our eventual winner from Alydar Stables, Smokin Cara patiently waiting for her time to strike. Toppifiant (Our Athletes) keeps her company for the time being.
(1/2 Mile- :46.05, Top of the stretch, 1.8F To Go)- The field makes their way down the backstretch and hits the top of the stretch with Queen Evade Party leading the way and three horses beginning to prepare to make moves to her outside. They would be Lysistrata, Loud Mouth, and Tarte Aux Pommes, and they would gradually cut into the leader’s advantage over the duration of the turn. Entering the top of the stretch, if you heard a few people shout loudly, they were the two or three people that had money on Tarte Aux Pommes, as that filly looked to be in the best position of that group. Further back, Shadow State prepared to make her own run, but would need to male it five wide entering the stretch. Points Of Grace, for now, had not made much of a push. Wyldewood started dropping back, and even at this point, we had not seen a lot out of Smokin Cara. She knows what she’s doing back there, but she needed to get it going soon. Toppifiant also had a lot of work to do if this was going to be her day.
(Finish- 1:21.87)- Early in the stretch, we would have five of them battling it out for the top spot, with Tarte Aux Pommes really looking like she might pull off a shocker based on the tote board. However, Shadow State was making enough progress while five wide with enough time to make it happen. Also, among the group, Lysistrata was keeping a good, steady stride while Queen Evade Party and Loud Mouth not looking as good. There would be an opening on the rail for Points Of Grace, and she started to try to take advantage of that but didn’t seem to be doing it quickly enough. Meanwhile, Smokin Cara was coming on strong, closing to be within three lengths with a furlong to go. There was enough room for her to use the same hole that Points Of Grace could have taken, and unlike that rival, she had the speed to capitalize on it. In the closing moments of the race, both Shadow State and Lysistrata would be the toughest to pass, and the three of them would hit the wire together. Fans stood in anticipation as there was no way to decipher who won the race without a photo, and perhaps we would have another dead heat. This time, there was enough there to declare Smokin Cara the winner, by the narrowest of margins of Shadow State with Lysistrata very close in this photo as well. It was close for the fourth-place check as well, but Points Of Grace prevailed there over Loud Mouth and Tarte Aux Pommes. Queen Evade Party, Wyldewood, and Toppifiant round it out.
About The Winner- Smokin Cara, trained by Alydar Stables and ridden to victory by G W Corbett, is a three-year-old filly by Smokin Luka and is out of Senorita Cara. She was bred in California as a first quarter two-year-old by Alydar Stables, the only trainer for which she has ever known. Congratulations to the connections! The win is her sixth in 13 starts, her fourth stake win and second graded win. Her career earnings are now $509.300.
Track: Fast
Time: :223 :46 1:094 1:214
$2 Mutuel Prices:
$1 Exacta: 5 – 4 Paid 215.70
$1 Trifecta: 5 – 4 – 3 Paid 834.20
Scratched: Acapulco Tradition
— NS
Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES
