Modesty Stakes – Grade III
1 1/8 Mile Turf Graded Stake Purse $500.00 Fillies And Mares Four Years Old And Up. At CD

Modesty Stakes draws a field of six well-qualified fillies and mares to duke it out over 1 1/8 miles on the turf, and I am going to turn the race upside down if I’m reading the odds right because the two mares I figure will be the lowest odds I have selected to come home last and next to last and I’m placing fourth and fifth choices in first and second and I’m placing the longest price in fourth and I was tempted to go higher with her. My thinking is this: while this is a very talented field, I’m a bit suspicious about the current form of both One Spirit and Decimas Queen, while the young filly Rain Rattle just won a Grade III race at SA earning a SRF 99 and Be Exceptional recently won a Grade III race at WO also earning a SRF 99 but on dirt. I also have my eye on No Plan B, a lightly raced mare that has won her only turf race and is stepping up to see what she’s made of. Maybe there is a Plan B… to become the next big turf star. Here’s the field:

Horse                                  Owner                               Odds  SRF

Rain Rattle                         Bears Stable                      4-1        99

Be Exceptional                  TwinTowersRacing            5-1        97

Categorical Destiny           Mb Stables                       7-2        98

No Plan B                           YME Stable                      15-1        92

Decimas Queen                  Maxmillion Farm               5-2        98

One Spirit                           Nakamura Stables            *2-1        96

1  Be Exceptional                    TwinTowersRacing              97

Be Exceptional seems to be in good form right now with some serious longshot performances. She looked strong battling to a 1 1/2 mile second in the Grade III Orchid at GP at 38-1. She is not limited to marathons either as is shown in her 1 1/4 mile win in the Grade III Maple Leaf at WO on dirt.

2  Rain Rattle         Bears Stable              99

Rain Rattle looks to be the hot horse in this race right now with a SRF 99 victory in the Grade III Santa Ana Handicap last out. Although that was at 1 1/4 miles, she ran second in a 1 1/8 mile SA allowance race and handled a couple of one mile turf Graded events back in the fall, so it looks like she has no trouble going up and down these distances.

3   No Plan B                  YME Stable                92

Here’s the gamble: lightly raced No Plan B has eight races, has won half of them. Has never tried turf. Her trainer, one of the savviest trainers in the game tries her on turf, and she wins smartly. Is she a turf phenom or was she just overpowering a weaker field? Well, I’m a gambling man, so I’ll throw my Disney Dollars on her and make her my dark horse in this race.

4   Categorical Destiny                        Mb Stables                    98

Categorical Destiny had a year good enough to be invited to the BC Fillies and Mares Turf last November. Not the happiest of results, but the win in the Grade II Flower Bowl at SAR that helped her get there must have been a fun day. She comes to this race off a well-fought second in the Grade III Santa Ana at SA.

5   One Spirit           Nakamura Stables                     96

One Spirit will probably be the favourite in here as the richest and most dedicated turf mare in the field but losing four of her last five races tells me something may be off, and the one she won was a $28.00 allowance race at TAM. Her last Graded stakes win was the Grade III Long Island at AQU back in early November and that was a marathon type race. Hope I’m wrong.

6   Decimas Queen        Maxmillion Farm                 98

Decimas Queen has great recent form against tough company, so if One Spirit isn’t the favourite, I reckon she will get the call. The problem for me is most of that form is on dirt and there are others in here that have been very busy against decent company which may take her on successfully.     

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES