SUN Oaks (KYO)- $200.000 Purse
SUN- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
March 25, 2018

Bora Bora seemed like she would be the favorite for the SUN Oaks, and that’s what she would be. Perhaps it was a little surprising that she was not a much larger favorite then the 3/1 odds that were placed on her. Goosebumps got a little more play in the Pick ‘em, and therefore was a close second choice. Everything seemed to be pointing Bora Bora’s way though, she was well rested, and her last race, at seven furlongs, could easily be thrown out. She was the runner up in the BC Juvenile Fillies, and was working well coming into the race. On this day, she would step it up and show that she still is at the top of her game. The winning trainer is Smokey Stover, winning the race for the first time in his career, and F Pennington was the winning jockey, also for the first time. Smokey Stover and Mb Stables currently combine for 8 of the top 12 spots on the KYO point leaderboard, meaning that for the Oaks we have two trainers who are unfortunately going to have to restrict their entries to three, instead of allowing the best horses to be at the race, regardless of ownership. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:41.79, the second fastest in the history of the stake. Let’s take a look at it!

(1/4 Mile- :23.87)- We would not see anyone pushed to the front straight from the gate, not even the ones starting on the outside. Instead, it was a very methodical and conservative start for the field, with eventually, a threesome of Free Jones (Mb Stables), Broomsticks Concerto (Drabfantasy), and Goosebumps (Jive Inc) sliding themselves in front of the field. Free Jones had the advantage at the quarter pole in a relaxed early pace. Sitting fourth would be a filly I’ve become accustomed to seeing at the lead, but this time Dashing Throughout was changing it up and stalking the field for Toppedout. City Never Sleeps (Saratoga Stud) and the eventual winner, Bora Bora for Smokey Stover, were on each side of her, and they about two lengths from the lead. Another length back, and running four wide was Morning Tea (Mb Stables), then another length back to Lafansee (Jive Inc) and Little Baby Sister (Oquinn Farm). Trailing would be the extreme longshot, Wine Crusade (Toppedout), and Bangalore (Barcelona Farms).

(½ Mile- :47.42)- The front three turn it up a notch in the backstretch, and the distance to the fourth place Dashing Throughout now becomes four lengths. Neither Free Jones or the second place Goosebumps were particularly known for jumping out to the lead, so this was something a little new to them. Broomsticks Concerto, who was the third horse of the group, is a lot more familiar with running on the lead. After Dashing Throughout, running fourth, we still see City Never Sleeps running with Bora Bora, and they are four and a half lengths off the lead. Morning Tea runs three wide with them. Further back, we’re not seeing much in the way of changes at this stage of the race.

(Top Of Stretch, 1.5F To Go)- Both Free Jones and Goosebumps are going at it pretty hard with one another exiting the backstretch, and throughout the turn. They remain side by side entering the stretch, but now with Goosebumps starting to pull ahead. Broomsticks Concerto lost a length to the top two. Dashing Throughout struggled during the turn, and lost valuable positions to the threesome of City Never Sleeps, Bora Bora, and Morning Tea, who continue to race together. The good news for them is that none of them figured to experience traffic problems in the stretch. Bora Bora would look to advance in the lane used by Goosebumps. Lafansee, Little Baby Sister, Wine Crusade, and Bangalore continued to show nothing, and time was winding down for them.

(Finish- 1:41.79)- Midway through the stretch, all seemed well for Goosebumps. She continued to lead, and it looked like City Never Sleeps, who made a sharp move to the rail, would be her biggest challenger. Then, with a just under a furlong to go, someone flipped the switch on Bora Bora. F Pennington was able to get her attention, and she would find another gear. Just like that, she was in full stride, and actually passed Goosebumps pretty easily. Had the race been longer, we can safely say she would have drawn away by even more. Impressive run by our winner Bora Bora. Goosebumps runs a solid second, but had nothing for the challenge of the winner. City Never Sleeps never made the run we thought we’d see on the rail, and ends up barely hanging on to third over a dead heat consisting of stablemates Free Jones and Morning Tea. Broomsticks Concerto faded to sixth and represents the cutoff line in this field between horses that ran well, and those who didn’t show up. The remainder of the running order is Wine Crusade, Lafansee, Little Baby Sister, Bangalore, and Dashing Throughout.

About The Winner- Bora Bora, trained by Smokey Stover, and ridden by F Pennington, is a three old filly by Hardline, and out of Alayne. She was bred in New Jersey by Smokey Stover as a first quarter two year old, the only trainer for which she has ever known! Congratulations to the connections! The win is her fourth in ten starts, and her second stake win. Her career earnings are now $717.200.

Track: Fast
Time: :23⁴  :47²  1:10⁴  1:41³

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 3 – 5 Paid 39.50
$1 Trifecta: 3 – 5 – 1 Paid 341.40

Scratched: None

Winner picked by NS

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded