NEWS
Perfect Sting weathers NY storm
Posted: Saturday, July 22, 2000
Bailey rides Stronach filly to determined victory over Snow Polina in New York Handicap
When the rains finally came to Long Island on July 15, they came via a gusty weather system that made the early morning hours at Belmont Park look like something from the movie "The Perfect Storm." The windswept rain ended earlier than forecast but not after rendering the turf soggy.
New York H. (G2)
Belmont Park, July 15, $250,000, 11/4 miles, turf, soft, 2:05.36
1-PERFECT STING, f. 4, Red Ransom-Valid Victress, by Valid Appeal.
2-Snow Polina, m. 5, Trempolino-Snow House (Ire), by Vacarme.
3-Pico Teneriffe, f. 4, Red Ransom-Ballerina Princess, by Mr. Prospector.
For trainer Joe Orseno, the worry was not how soft the turf would become but whether the 57th running of the $250,000 New York Handicap (G2) would come off the grass, as had two earlier scheduled turf races.
After all, Frank Stronach's filly, Perfect Sting, had won two of the bigger races of her career over mushy going-the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes (G2) on a yielding course at Keeneland and the Garden City Breeders' Cup Handicap (G1) at Belmont on a soft course, both last fall.
Moreover, Perfect Sting was not only carrying a perfect 4-for-4 record at Belmont into the 1 1/4-mile race, she was also carrying jockey Jerry Bailey, who was an astonishing 26-for-56 in grass races leading up to the penultimate weekend of racing in New York this spring. "Even when Bailey is in trouble, he figures out a way to get out and be there at the finish," noted Orseno before the race.
The race wound up staying on the turf, albeit with the portable rail out 18 feet, a fact not lost on Aaron Gryder, the rider of Snow Polina. When the gates flew open, Gryder sent the distance-loving European filly straight to the fore and promptly backed the pace down to set fractions of :25.43, :50.40, 1:14.65, and 1:39.16 as they cruised along with a two-length advantage over Colstar.
Bailey, meanwhile, was content to let Perfect Sting, the 1.15-to-1 favorite, bide her time in the middle of the pack. On the far turn, the bay daughter of Red Ransom out of Valid Victress, by Valid Appeal, began advancing steadily on the outside, moving to within striking distance of the pacesetter at the quarter pole.
But over the next 110 yards, a stubborn 1 1/2-length gap between the two stayed the same as Snow Polina refused to yield. With an eighth of a mile to go, Perfect Sting appeared beaten, but the race was far from over. Showing extraordinary grit and determination, Perfect Sting wore down Snow Polina in the final yards and somehow managed to stick her head in front at the wire to win her third straight race.
"The real great ones always find a way to win," said Bailey, who notched his third straight success of the day with the victory. "I had her in a comfortable spot down the backstretch, but at the three-sixteenths pole I didn't think we would get there. Then, we hit the eighth pole, and she kept grinding into Snow Polina's lead. Aaron rode a great race, but Perfect Sting wanted to win this."
Gryder said Snow Polina "ran hard and had such a smooth galloping stride, I thought I was home at the quarter pole, but it took a champion to beat her."
Added Orseno: "In that last eighth-mile Perfect Sting showed how good she really was. She dug in and she knew where the wire was. She has a lot of heart."
Now 11-for-16, Perfect Sting completed the race in 2:05.36. Pico Teneriffe closed to finish third, another 4 1/2 lengths back. Completing the order of finish were Innuendo (Ire), Colstar, Emanating, Spanish Fern, and La Ville Rouge.
The victory, which with the winner's purse of $150,000 boosted her bankroll to $1,042,042, earned the four-year-old Perfect Sting a short rest before her final push toward the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1), a race in which she finished sixth last year after a horrid trip.
"We're going to give her a short breather and get her ready for the Diana (Handicap [G2] at 1 1/8 miles at Saratoga on September 4)," said Orseno. "That should be a really good race. I don't think she's going to have a problem with that distance, the distance of the Breeders' Cup, or any other distance, for that matter."
Rob's Spirit's Lexington
Bailey continued his success on turf the following day as well, piloting the Bill Mott-trained Rob's Spirit to a 5 1/2-length victory over Plato in the $150,000 Lexington Stakes (G3) for three-year-olds.
Lexington S. (G3)
Belmont Park, July 16, $150,000, 11/4 miles, turf, soft, 2:02.87
1-ROB'S SPIRIT, c. 3, Theatrical (Ire)-Winglet, by Alydar.
2-Plato, c. 3, Lure-Arutua, by Riverman.
3-Rumsonontheriver, c. 3, River Special-Coastal Connection, by Coastal.
"If you hang around Bill Mott long enough, you can't help being successful on the turf," Bailey said with a grin afterward.
The 1 1/4-mile Lexington marked the first stakes victory for Rob's Spirit, a bay son of Theatrical (Ire) out of Winglet, by Alydar, who is a half brother to 1997 champion three-year-old filly Ajina, by Strawberry Road (Aus).
A good second in the June 17 Hill Prince Stakes (G3) at Belmont last time out and now outfitted with blinkers, the colt displayed the focus he had been missing in his earlier races. He raced close to the pace set by Rumsonontheriver, then moved up quickly on the turn to take command at the head of the stretch. With Bailey urging him, he easily opened up through the stretch and hit the wire in 2:02.87 over a course that was still soft from the previous day's rain.
Plato rallied to edge Rumsonontheriver for place, with Aldo, Parade Leader, and Be Mine Tonight completing the order of finish.
"I couldn't have asked for a better trip," Bailey said. "He's got a great cruising speed, and he lets you sit him where you need to be. The turf didn't seem all that soft to me, but he handled the going great anyway. He'll only get better."
The 0.85-to-1 favorite, Rob's Spirit earned $90,000 for his owner-breeder, Allen Paulson. He has won three of five career starts, all on grass.
"He ran a very good race in the Hill Prince last time out," said Kenny McCarthy, assistant to Mott. "He was beaten only a half-length that day. This was a logical spot for him to run in. He's been training well and ran a real good race today."
Jenny Kellner is a New York correspondent for Thoroughbred Times.
