OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Bill Mott already trains the best 3-year-old colt in the country in dual classic winner Sovereignty. Mott hopes he has an up-and-coming 3-year-old stakes filly in Mazayaat, who makes her stakes debut in Sunday’s $125,000 Wilton at Aqueduct.
“To get his accolades she’ll have to move forward in a hurry,” Mott said.
True. But to win the Wilton, Mazayaat may need only to continue to make the incremental improvement she has thus far in her brief career. The Wilton, which had been run in Saratoga for its first three runnings, was moved to Aqueduct this year in a juggling of the stakes program. Originally drawn with six, the one-turn mile will lose one runner, Liam in the Dust, who has been re-entered in a first-level allowance Thursday at Churchill Downs with a $127,000 purse.
Mazayaat, a daughter of Bernardini who cost $650,000 as a 2-year-old in training, finished second in each of her first two starts. At Gulfstream Park, on March 1, Mazayaat finished second to Indy Bay, who has since won two more races, including the Jersey Girl Stakes on June 8 at Saratoga.
On April 17, at Keeneland, Mazayaat finished second to Clicquot, who came out of that race to win a first-level allowance on May 31 at Churchill. Clicquot finished sixth in the same March 1 race in which Mazayaat was second.
“She ran pretty good her first two starts,” Mott said. “At least she was keeping good company.”
In her maiden win at Aqueduct going a mile, Mazayaat was headed by Snowyte – last year’s Grade 1 Frizette runner-up – and won by one length over Meursault, who came back to win her maiden by six lengths last Sunday.
Since her win, Mazayaat has worked three times, including a half-mile move in 47 seconds on Tuesday, the fastest of 63 works at the distance.
Mazayaat, who will break from post 2 under Junior Alvarado, will have to avoid getting in a duel with Dry Powder or Pink Ruby, two fillies who have done their best work on the front end. Dry Powder was a game debut winner March 16 before finishing second to Cassiar in a first-level allowance on May 1.
Pink Ruby won a six-furlong maiden/optional $75,000 claimer at Oaklawn Park in April before taking a first-level allowance at Monmouth Park going a two-turn mile May 18 for trainer Lindsay Schultz.
Cat Chat, trained by Mark Hennig, has won her last two starts, a maiden at Gulfstream and an allowance at Aqueduct. The latter race scratched down to a three-horse field when the race was moved from turf to dirt. Cat Chat’s first race of the year came against the well-regarded Shred the Gnar, who beat her by 9 3/4 lengths.
Hennig said jockey John Velazquez told him he got buried on the rail that day.
“Her last couple have been good,” Hennig said. “Obviously, stepping up in class but it looks like she’ll have some pace to run at.”
Sweet Seraphine, trained by Cherie DeVaux, ships in off a maiden win going a one-turn mile on May 24 at Churchill and figures to get a nice stalking trip under Irad Ortiz Jr.
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