The Gazelle – (Grade lll) [KYO]

Purse $200.000 – For Fillies Three Years Old

1 1/8 Miles – Dirt

Aqueduct – April 4, 2026

You had to hold your breath down the lane as Woman On The Moon finds room late in the stretch to take down the 24th running of The Gazelle. This win now puts the daughter of Solar System fifth in Kentucky Oaks Qualifying Points and solidifies her in the starting gate for the first Friday in May. It was also her second stakes win and career earnings for this filly now increase to $488.200. Arindel gets his second Gazelle victory as well as jockey Jose Lezcano. Now proving herself around the mile and an eighth distance and with speed figures skyrocketing, this filly will be a serious contender for the Kentucky Oaks. Congratulations and best of luck to the connections as Woman On The Moon’s next start will be the biggest one of her career.

Winner: Woman On The Moon – (Arindel, J. Lezcano) Breaking from the gate, this filly had a clear run into the first turn. She ended up settling on the rail in sixth down the backstretch in the third flight of horses. The 5/16 pole was when Woman On The Moon started to inch forward and make her move to catch the leaders. However, there was some trouble entering the stretch. She found herself boxed in on the rail with no clear running lane, forcing Jose Lezcano to wait for racing room. It wasn’t until deep in the final furlong that a seam finally opened, and jockey Jose Lezcano quickly angled her out. Once clear, Woman On The Moon exploded late, surging to the wire to win by a head. Congratulations!

Second Place: Wicked Angelina – (The Sidley Stud, E. Esquivel) The daughter of Techfluence Heat had an extremely wide trip the whole way around the racetrack. She found herself five-wide in the first turn and down the backside. At the quarter pole, Wicked Angelina started to make up some ground and was pushed seven-wide in the stretch! She was absolutely rolling past the field and just couldn’t catch Woman On The Moon at the wire. This was her fourth second-place finish in a row and with a more ground-saving trip, she probably wins this race. Wicked Angelina now sits in eighth for Kentucky Oaks points and will be one to watch as she takes on the best three-year-old fillies in the game.

Third Place: Boardwalk Freak – (Noblepark, J. NavMarin) For just her fifth career start, it’s clear that Boardwalk Freak is getting better and better with each race. She had a relatively good trip after being four wide around the first turn. Halfway down the backstretch, this filly dove down to the rail trying to save as much ground as possible. She was staring at a wall of horses in front of her at the quarter pole, and jockey Jose NavMarin sat patiently for a hole to open. It paid off nicely as some room opened up and a clear lane opened for her to run. Boardwalk Freak unfortunately wasn’t able to close quick enough and settled for third. She’s knocking on the door of a breakthrough performance.

Fourth Place: Do Not Disturb – (Panionios Racing, J. Montano) It was another wide trip for this daughter of Archimedes, but that was to be expected with her outside draw. She was five-wide going around the first turn and halfway down the backside. It got a little better for her approaching the far turn as she was saving as much ground as she could. At the top of the lane, Do Not Disturb found herself six-wide with a lot of work to do to catch the leaders. Jose Montano was doing the best he could, but the other fillies behind her were able to close faster. With her win in the Virginia Oaks and a fourth-place finish here, she now has enough points to be in the starting gate for the Kentucky Oaks.

– AJM

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES