The Suwannee River (Grade 3)- $100.000 Purse
GP- For Fillies and Mares Four Years Old and Upward
One Mile and One Eighth on the Turf
February 6, 2021

So much for Forty Chai looking like the one to beat in this race. In the end, everyone would beat her. While that one pulled a no-show, Admire Beauty continued her climb through the ranks, scoring her third consecutive win and first graded victory. She has become a simply amazing claim for Arindel, getting her from Fractious in September, and has done everything right in her new barn. It is the first win for Arindel in this race, and that is also true for jockey J L Ortiz. Congratulations to them! The time of the race was 1:46.22, which is a middle of the road winning time for this race in its history. Here’s a look at it!

(½ Mile- :48.12)- A group of four vie for the early lead, and gradually Brevia, out of BomBay Stables is a little faster than her rivals are, and she takes the advantage moving into the first turn. Our eventual winner, Arindel’s Admire Beauty was a part of this group as well, but would not force the issue. After half a mile, she sat a couple lengths off the lead, running even for second with Goblin Judge, from Wood Duck Stables. Dovetail runs fourth on the rail for Hunterman Stable, and it’s about another length and a half to Classic Princess (Lindeman Prairie) and Forty Chai (Estero Farms). Amaris (First Street Stables) is about another two lengths back.

(¾ Mile- 1:11.28)- The longshot, Brevia, shows the way down the backstretch and into the turn, still leading by about two lengths. Goblin Judge has poked a head in front of Admire Beauty for the second spot, but neither of them are overly concerned about Brevia at this point. Dovetail has lost some ground, and falls into the clutches of both Classic Princess and Forty Chai. Amaris still runs at the back of the pack.

(Top of the stretch, 1.5F To Go)- Brevia is still out in front, but her lead is shrinking. It is still unclear as to which of Goblin Judge or Admire Beauty will emerge as the bigger challenger in the stretch as both of them are creeping forward in a side by side manner. Classic Princess is now in fourth, but about a length and a half further behind, so she would have a lot of work to do considering those rivals were still running well. Both Dovetail and Forty Chai were needing to show something soon or they would be left behind. Amaris started looking a little more interested now, but still had a lot of ground to make up.

(Finish- 1:46.22)- Both Goblin Judge and Admire Beauty continued to run side by side and battle for position in the stretch as they tried to complete the pass of Brevia. However, Brevia was not about to go down without a fight and still had plenty of run left herself. Approaching the wire, Admire Beauty started to emerge as being the best of the group, and this would get her the win by about half a length. There is no separating Brevia and Goblin Judge as they dead heat for third. Classic Princess got a little closer in fourth but needed to be closer to the front earlier. Dovetail, Amaris, and Forty Chai round it out.

About The Winner- Admire Beauty, trained by Fractious and ridden to victory by J L Ortiz, is a four year old filly by Aggravation and is out of the late Apple Pie. She was bred by Fractious as a third quarter two year old in California, and acquired by Arindel via a $32.000 claim in September 2020. Congratulations to the connections! The win is her sixth in 12 starts, her second stake win, and first graded win. Her career earnings are now $201.800.

Track: Firm
Time: :48   1:11¹  1:34²  1:46¹

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 3 – 2 Paid 56.20, 3 – 6 Paid 121.50
$1 Trifecta: 3 – 2 – 6 Paid 663.90, 3 – 6 – 2 Paid 663.90

Scratched: Maggie Greene

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES