The Alabama – (Gl)

Purse $600.00 – For Fillies Three Years Old – 1 1/4 Miles – Dirt
Saratoga – August 22, 2026

The stretch-out proved no problem for Mb Stables’ Fire Missle, who graduated from a state-bred stakes winner to now a Grade One winner with a wire-to-wire score in the 23rd Alabama! This three-year-old filly has now won three of her past four starts from seven furlongs to 1 1/4-miles. Bred in Ontario by Arkansas Elite, connections picked up Fire Missle privately for $3.00 back in September last year and has now increased her lifetime earnings to $599.80. Mb Stables continues to build on his remarkable record in The Alabama, securing a record sixth victory after previously winning three consecutive editions from 2022 through 2024. The daughter of Fraud Monet covered the mile and a quarter in a sharp 2:01.36, which is the second-fastest running of this race in the past nine years. It would definitely make sense for Fire Missle to make her next appearance in the Grade One Cotillion at Parx. However, I’m sure Mb will have this filly ready to fire wherever she goes next. Congratulations to the connections on this impressive victory!

Winner: Fire Missle – (Mb Stables, L. Saez) A late jockey change was made from Manny Franco to Luis Saez. Mb has really reinvented this horse from being a deep closer to now running on the lead. She broke from the gate in great order and immediately went to the lead. Fire Missle ran between horses rounding the first turn with the favorite Pineapple Puff to the outside and Dont Take The Girl to the inside. She eventually made her way to the rail, holding a half-length advantage traveling down the backside. The fractions were 47.79, 1:11.98, & 1:36.46. This filly started to open up passing the 5/16 pole—kicking away with authority. No one was able to catch Fire Missle down the stretch and scored by a half-length. Well done!

Second Place: West Coast Girls – (Diablo Diablo, R. Bejarano) This was a nice bounce-back effort after a string of some disappointing performances. West Coast Girls didn’t show any speed from the gate and found herself running seven lengths off the pace in the early stages. Jockey Rafael Bejarano did a good job getting this filly into a nice rhythm down the backstretch. She didn’t start mounting her bid until the field reached the ⅜ pole, leaving a lot of ground to make up in a short amount of time. The good thing was that West Coast Girls saved a lot of ground early, so she had a lot of run in reserve. Rafael Bejarano found a clear running lane five-wide and absolutely flew down the stretch. A few more jumps and this would’ve been the winner.

Third Place: Pineapple Puff – (Nakamura Stables, E J. Zayas) Coming into The Alabama as the favorite, this daughter of Huff N Puff had a huge target on her back. Pineapple Puff was seeking her third straight Grade One victory after dominating on this Saratoga dirt track. She broke very well from the gate and vied for the early lead with Fire Missle into the first turn. Jockey Edgard Zayas gave up the early advantage, settling down the backside in second just off her right hip. She was really in the perfect position to pounce on the eventual winner, but ended up losing a bit of ground as the field reached the quarter pole. Pineapple Puff was outkicked down the stretch and couldn’t make an impression late—finishing an even third.

Fourth Place: Woman On The Moon – (Arindel, T. Gaffalione) Mb Stables reinvented Fire Missle as a front-runner, while this filly experienced the opposite transformation and was turned into a deep closer. You could tell Woman On The Moon would enjoy the extra distance due to her conformation and one-mile workouts in the morning. She broke fine leaving the gate and traveled two-wide into the first turn. The daughter of Solar System raced down the backside in sixth, hoping for a fast pace upfront. Jockey Tyler Gaffalione started asking his horse to go at the ⅜ pole with a clear running lane on the outside. Woman On The Moon slowly made up ground heading into the stretch, but was only able to close into fourth. She could’ve finished third if Tyler didn’t shift her down the rail late.

– AJM

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES