Secret Status moves to the head of the three-year-old filly class with victory in the Mother Goosep>After her overpowering victory in the Kentucky Oaks (G1) on May 5, the connections of Secret Status had a decision to make. Chief among objectives for the three-year-old daughter of A.P. Indy out of Private Status, by Alydar, were the Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) at Belmont Park on July 22 and the Alabama Stakes (G1) at Saratoga on August 19. The question was, how best to prepare her for those races?

Mother Goose S. (G1)
Belmont Park, July 1, $250,000, 11/8 miles, fast, 1:48.03
1-SECRET STATUS, f. 3, A.P. Indy-Private Status, by Alydar.
2-Jostle, f. 3, Brocco-Moon Drone, by Drone.
3-Finder's Fee, f. 3, Storm Cat-Fantastic Find, by Mr. Prospector.

"We knew we weren't going to run her in the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (G2) (May 19) two weeks back," said trainer Neil Howard. "And we knew we were going to have to run her one turn at least once here (at Belmont Park), and it wouldn't be smart to do that at a mile in the Acorn (Stakes [G1])."

Meaning that it would be eight weeks between races for Secret Status, who made her first start since the Oaks on July 1 in the $250,000 Mother Goose Stakes (G1), the second leg of New York's Triple Tiara.

"It's a little longer (between races) than we would have wanted," said Howard, who trains Secret Status for William S. Farish, James Elkins, and Temple Webber Jr. "At least at a mile and an eighth, you've got her distance."

If there were any fears on Howard's part that the layoff would adversely affect the filly, they were quickly allayed.

After a bit of a shaky break, Secret Status settled in nicely on the inside as Jostle and Heavens Above contested fast early fractions of :23.03, :45.63, and 1:09.82. Approaching the quarter pole, jockey Pat Day moved the A.P. Indy filly to the outside, and once clear, she was able to overtake Jostle with 220 yards to go, albeit with a bit of urging, and pull off to a 2 1/4-length victory. "I rode her with confidence; she deserves to be ridden that way," said Day of the filly, who covered the distance in 1:48.03. "She didn't break all that cleanly, but she recovered and settled nicely. I had the other fillies measured turning for home, but once we straightened away, she didn't seem too concerned with putting Jostle away. I gave her a couple of taps, and inside the sixteenth pole she really took off."

It was the first Mother Goose victory for Day.

Out of the bridle

"She came out of the bridle just a tad, but Pat woke her up inside the sixteenth pole and she was reaching out nicely," noted Howard. "What we were going to try to do, schedule-wise, wasn't going to work out. So, we decided to run her once around one turn. The two big goals are the next two races, the Coaching Club and the Alabama."

Jostle, one of the longer shots in the field at 18-to-1, held on gamely for second, with Acorn winner Finder's Fee along for third, another 1 1/2 lengths back. Completing the order of finish were C'Est L' Amour, Heavens Above, Cat Cay, and March Magic.

"She ran a dynamite race," said jockey Mike Smith of the runner-up. "She was real comfortable going down the backside. The fractions were quick, but we expected that. She was well within herself. She picked it up a bit heading for home-it took a Kentucky Oaks winner to beat her."

"We were either planning on going to the front or laying off (Heavens Above)," said her trainer, John Servis. "But it turned out she gave us a slim lead and then hooked us. We weren't hoping for fractions that fast."

As for Finder's Fee, trainer Claude R. "Shug" McGaughey III said he was not overly disappointed with the Acorn winner's performance.

"I thought she ran fine," said McGaughey. "She had to make up so much ground; she just wasn't good enough today."

Added jockey John Velazquez: "It set up perfectly for us. I got to them, but she just didn't fire like she did (in the Acorn). I don't think the distance hurt her. She ran good."

Secret Status, who has won three straight to extend her record to six wins and three thirds in ten lifetime starts, has now earned $711,163 for her owners. If her victory was not the same electrifying performance she displayed at Churchill Downs, it was not meant to be.

"She's doing things we like to see a good horse do, coming off the layoff like that," Howard said. "She's shown typical maturity for an A.P. Indy. When they start out, they are not too precocious. Mentally and physically, they need time to develop.

"With eight weeks between races, you always worry that you can get off schedule and the benefit of a race like she ran last time could wear off. But she'll be able to use this race to her advantage. She should feel at home in the longer races."

Trippi beats older rivals The victory of Dogwood Stable's Trippi in the 1 1/8-mile Flamingo Stakes (G3) on April 8 proved he was more than just a sprinter. But trainer Todd Pletcher was not about to play against his strength.

Tom Fool H. (G2)
Belmont Park, July 2, $150,000, 7 furlongs, fast, 1:21.69
1-TRIPPI, c. 3, End Sweep-Jealous Appeal, by Valid Appeal.
2-Cornish Snow, h. 7, Storm Cat-Pleasantly Free, by Pleasant Colony.
3-Sailor's Warning, c. 4, Storm Cat-Private Light, by Private Account.

Three weeks after Trippi scored a nine-length victory in the seven-furlong Riva Ridge Stakes (G2), Pletcher wheeled him back in the seven-furlong, $150,000 Tom Fool Handicap (G2) at Belmont against older rivals. Trippi certified his trainer's choice by scoring a 4 1/2-length victory.

"He's made those decisions really easy," said Pletcher of the three-year-old son of End Sweep out of Jealous Appeal, by Valid Appeal. "He's come a long way in a short time."

Since making his debut on January 29 at Gulfstream Park, Trippi has won six of his seven lifetime starts at distances from six furlongs to 1 1/8 miles. The only performance that could be considered disappointing was his 11th-place finish in the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby (G1), a race Pletcher thinks was not as bad it might appear on paper.

"Some people think he didn't run a good race in the Derby, but it was a deceptively good race for him," Pletcher noted. "I think it was the second-fastest six furlongs in Derby history, and at the eighth pole he was still very much in the picture."

Following the Derby, the Dogwood Stable colt was given a five-week break before his impressive return in the Riva Ridge on the Belmont Stakes (G1) undercard on June 10. After that victory, Pletcher and Dogwood general partner Cot Campbell discussed their options, which included the 1 1/16-mile Iowa Derby at Prairie Meadows on July 3, but elected to let the colt-who had won all three of his previous starts at seven furlongs-play to his strength.

In the Tom Fool, Trippi was facing older rivals for the first time, but he was also for the first time getting a break in the weights. Carrying 112 pounds (11 less than he toted in the Riva Ridge), Trippi broke smartly and outlegged Carter Handicap (G1) winner Brutally Frank for the early lead as he zipped through fractions of :22.14 and :44.57.

Rounding the turn, Trippi opened up by nearly six lengths as his rivals toiled in his wake, and he sailed home easily under jockey Jerry Bailey to hit the wire in final time of 1:21.69 on a fast track. Cornish Snow finished second, followed by Sailor's Warning, Brutally Frank, Fire King, and Wouldn't We All. "He's deceiving," Bailey said. "He doesn't drop down and give you the feeling he's giving you another gear. He just maintains that same wicked pace." Trippi returned $3.90 to win as the favorite and increased his bankroll to $428,400. He also gave Pletcher a lot more options.

"The King's Bishop (Stakes [G1]) is kind of been our mid-summer goal," said Pletcher of the seven-furlong, $200,000 race at Saratoga on August 26. "As for whether we'll run him in between, that's something I'll discuss with Mr. Campbell."

NOTES-On the July 2 undercard, trainer Mark Hennig unleashed Edward P. Evans's homebred Raging Fever in the $103,500 Astoria Stakes at 5 1/2 furlongs for two-year-old fillies. The daughter of Storm Cat out of Pennant Fever, by Seattle Slew, showed her heels to three rivals in scoring an easy 11 1/4-length triumph under Velazquez. It was her second victory in as many starts. She won her debut on May 25 at Belmont by six lengths. She is a full sister to stakes winner Stormin Fever.