The Kittens Joy (Grade 3)- $100.000 Purse
GP- For Three Year Olds
One Mile on the Inner Turf
January 30, 2021

Mahogany Storm continued his domination of the turf on Saturday, as the Good Authority colt won on the grass for the third time in four tries, and grabbed his second graded win. After not being at his best in the BC Juvenile Turf, Smokey Stover bypassed other potential stake options and looked to try and get the horse’s confidence back in an allowance. That has proven to be the right call, as he would win there, and now wins the Grade 3 Kittens Joy by a length. The win is the first in this race for both the trainer and for the jockey, C J Lanerie. Congratulations to them! The winning time was 1:33.33, the second fastest of the four editions of this race which were run at a mile. This was the first year that the race ran with the graded designation. Let’s take a look!

(¼ Mile- :23.49)- Schematic Plan, out of Aer Stables, prevails in an initial battle for the race lead with the outside running Mr Orange, from Arindel. That one settles into the second spot just as Mb Stables’ Valid Point begins to advance his position. Determined Commando, the longshot from Estero Farms is running on the rail in the fourth position and is about a length off the lead. Dream State, out of Mb Stables, is with this group in the fifth position. After a gap of a length and a half, they are four wide across the track, and our eventual winner, Mahogany Storm, is the outside lane of these four, for his trainer, Smokey Stover. Mr Ice Pick (Sincityfarms) is on the rail here, with Day Of The Dragon (John Henry) and San Diego Fire (First Street Stables) beside him. Marty McFly (Greeko Holdem) is next, then it is a ways back to the trailer, Puffman (Keikowin Racing).

(½ Mile- :46.74)- As they move around the first turn, and into the backstretch, Valid Point begins to put a little more pressure on Schematic Plan, but still runs second to the early frontrunner for now. Mr Orange, still on the outside, has fallen two lengths off the lead, and it’s another to Determined Commando, who also lost some ground here. Dream State remains fifth, and Mr Ice Pick is looking to come between them. Meanwhile, Mahogany Storm has advanced his position enough to leave those he had been running with, and is about three and a half lengths from the front. Day Of The Dragon, San Diego Fire and Marty McFly run together while Puffman puffs to himself in the back.

(Top Of Stretch, 1.5F To Go)- Schematic Plan continues to lead the way around the turn and into the stretch, but that lead is diminishing. Valid Point is still running to his inside, but one horse that moved forward nicely in the turn is Determined Commando, and that one is in great position to strike on exit of the turn. As all this was going on, Mahogany Storm was just methodically getting a little closer with every stride. There was no large, sudden push that began at a given point, simply a gradual advance. Now, at the top of the stretch, he was up to fourth, and just a length from the lead and Smokey Stover had to like what he was seeing now. Further back, Dream State still ran his middle of the field race, and Mr Orange was packing it in. Day Of The Dragon looked to be eyeing a run along the rail if he could make it work. Others were not looking like factors.

(Finish- 1:33.33)- Determined Commando inched past Schematic Plan early in the stretch, but there was no stopping Mahogany Storm who kept on coming on the outside, not worrying about this trip. He’d make it work, and once he made the pass of Determined Commando with half the stretch to go, then that was all she wrote for the rest of the field. No one new was emerging with a run, so Mahogany Storm just had to hold steady to the wire, and he would do just that. Determined Commando was a clear second here, and Schematic Plan would get third place for his effort, holding off Day Of The Dragon for that spot. Valid Point slipped to fifth, just ahead of his stablemate Dream State, who ran an uneventful middle of the field race throughout. The others were non-factors as Marty McFly, Puffman, Mr Orange, San Diego Fire, and Mr Ice Pick round it out.

About The Winner- Mahogany Storm, trained by Smokey Stover, and ridden to victory by C J Lanerie, is a three year old colt by Good Authority, and is out of Hawaiian Pirate. He was bred in New York as a yearling by the trainer, and they have been together throughout. Congratulations to the connections! This win is his fourth in seven starts, and his second graded win. His career earnings are now $257.320.

Track: Firm
Time: :23²  :46³  1:09⁴  1:33¹

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 9 – 3 Paid 1,437.70
$1 Trifecta: 9 – 3 – 8 Paid 1,298.80

Scratched: People Pleaser

— NS

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES