Dogwood – Grade III
7 furlongs Dirt Stake Purse $300.000 Three-Year-Old Fillies. At CD

1st      Houseofidentity                   Noblepark              10.65-1 (HRP) 5-1 (SRF)

I mentioned that Houseofidentity has discovered she likes winning sprints, and it sure looks like she’s not done. She used the same deep close that she used in The Prioress last out, and her timing was near perfect as she was drawing away by a half-length at the wire after coming from seventh early on. Ahh, all those long routes and now three straight wins, and she doesn’t have to run as far.

2nd      Absent Friends            TwinTowersRacing          7.70-1 (HRP) 10-1 (SRF)

Absent Friends did not come into this race with as impressive a resume as others, and I thought not that much of a chance, but the determined filly pushed the pacesetters all the way, right to the wire and continued on to finish on even terms with Este Nocha.

2nd      Este Nocha          D J C Racing Stables                 6.70-1 (HRP) 6-1 (SRF)

Last thing I said about Este Nocha is that she looks very dangerous here, and then I placed her seventh in my handicap. You’d think I’d learn to listen to me. She certainly made a dangerous run, stalking closely in fourth and closing gradually in through the final quarter to come within a half-length of the winner at the wire.

4th      Black Regazze               Nakamura Stables           *3.20-1 (HRP) 6-1 (SRF)

Black Regazze went wire-to-wire in Audubon Oaks in her last and was planning the same for this, and it sure looked like she was going to pull it off until a swarm of closers got her at the wire. I think more than lost, she got surprised.

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES