Ladies Marathon- Grade III
1 5/16 Miles Turf Stake Purse $2,000.000 Fillies And Mares Three-Year-Olds And Up. At KD

1st      One Spirit               Nakamura Stables              6.30-1 (HRP) 6-1 (SRF)

In my preview I mentioned the similarity of One Spirit’s preparation for this race and her impressive performance in the same distance, same surface, same racetrack Dueling Grounds Oaks when she changed tactics to come from far off the pace to run second beaten only half-length. Well, exactly what she did here today, except there was no beating. She tore through the stretch with perfect timing and scored a neck victory. There were no giant graded races on her way to this race, and this was a huge step up, but she doesn’t know that. She’s just marching merrily along annihilating everything in her path to becoming a major factor in the female turf marathon division.

2nd      Nijinsky                  Team 7 Illusions                 5.90-1 (HRP) 5-1 (SRF)

The most dedicated marathon mare in this race,  Nijinsky, came out of the gate last, it was her calculated positioning for her closing run down the stretch 1 5/16 miles down the green, and her plan was to poke her head in front of all others at the exact moment for victory, and she came within a neck of success. For her third straight stakes, she placed second, the reluctant bridesmaid.

3rd      Lady Hilltopper          Black N Gold Stable            *2-1 (HRP) *2-1 (SRF)

OK, so I was wrong, there was no great match-up between Lady Hilltopper and Ponzi Scheme and HRP knew it. I was right about Lady Hilltopper being the 2-1 favourite, but that’s where it ended. I have nothing further to say on that particular subject. The Lady, however, had a bit to say about how this race finished up. Six years old and not all that fond of races this long, she still stalked the leaders into the stretch and looked like she might take yet another big money race until the deep closers nipped her at the wire. She still shines brilliantly and will be happy to meet any of these lasses at a panel shorter. Or on most any other day, if the price is right, I’m pretty sure her connections would be happy to meet at any distance you choose.

4th      Lille                      Mo Mentum Farm         5.25-1 (HRP) 4-1 (SRF)

Lille continues her promising development from claimer to solid graded stakes horse with a strong showing in this challenging race. It’s a bit sad that fourth is such a small payout considering the value of this race. She forced the pace throughout the long grueling tour in her first time so far and continued on gamely to be within a length of the winner at the end.

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES