Nassau Stakes (Grade 2)- $175.00 Purse
WO- For Fillies and Mares Three Years Old and Upward
One Mile on the Turf
July 19, 2026

The track at WO may have been fast/firm on Sunday, but there was plenty of rain for the Nassau Stakes. That would be in the form of Rain Rattle, a talented four year old filly for Bears Stable who had won just a tick over $1,000.00 for her career coming into the race. She’s also proven that she knows how to win, as this victory was her twelfth in 23 starts, and it gives both Bears Stable and jockey J R Velazquez their first win in this race. Congratulations to them! The time of the race was 1:32.90, and that is a new stake record. Let’s take a look at it!

(1/4 Mile- :23.10)- Memphis Reins surges to the lead at the start of the race for Williams9 and will be nearly a length ahead of our pick to win, The Sidley Stud’s Lucy Heat. There are three stalkers running right behind them, and there is not much between them as they run alongside one another. Our eventual winner from Bears Stable, Rain Rattle, is a part of this group, running between horses and officially being scored in fourth place. Mo Mentum Farm’s Love has a nose in front of her while running on the rail, while Soho Doubt runs on the outside for Mb Stables. There’s a break of a length and a half to Lagastable’s Tick Laga, and about two and a half to Greyhound’s Youthful Thoughts. Trailing the field is Borgin And Burkes, from Delta Farms.

(½ Mile- :46.31)- Lucy Heat pulls up alongside Memphis Reins midway through the backstretch and will begin to make the pass before reaching the turn. She’ll lead by a neck after a half mile. Behind them, Rain Rattle moves into the third spot, a half-length ahead of Love while running in the lane behind Memphis Reins. Soho Doubt is starting to struggle to keep up with them. Tick Laga is two lengths behind them, and it’s now a long way back to Youthful Thoughts and Borgin And Burkes.

(Top of Stretch, 2F To Go)- Lucy Heat is strong in the turn, but Memphis Reins is showing some grit by hanging in there with her. These two will enter the stretch with Lucy Heat about a half length ahead. Meanwhile, the veteran Rain Rattle is setting up her run, especially on exit of the turn. After running close behind Lucy Heat for a while, J R Velazquez will now look to utilize the lane between the top two. Love is still fourth but does not have the same strength in her stride. Soho Doubt still tries to hang in there while Tick Laga lacks response. Youthful Thoughts and Borgin And Burkes have a lot of work to do at this point.

(Finish- 1:32.90)- With a furlong to go, Lucy Heat is still in front, but she begins to drift to the outside and that helps Rain Rattle make up more ground. Memphis Reins is still hanging in there and cannot be ruled out at this point either. These three are heads apart as we get closer to the wire, but that just means that Rain Rattle has caught up to them and should have enough to pull out the win. That’s how it would play out at the end as she goes on to win by a quarter length over Lucy Heat, who’s the same distance ahead of Memphis Reins. Borgin And Burkes woke up in the stretch to get up for fourth over Love but never threatened for anything more. Soho Doubt, Tick Laga, and Youthful Thoughts round it out.

About the Winner- Rain Rattle, trained by Bears Stable and ridden to victory by J R Velazquez, is a four-year-old filly by La Lune Rain and is out of Rattle French. She was bred by T Boy Racing in West Virginia as a first quarter two-year-old and was acquired by Bears Stable with a $4.00 claim in August 2024. Congratulations to the connections! The win is her twelfth in 23 starts, her eighth stake win and sixth graded win. Her career earnings are now $1,107.20.

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES