SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Trainer-breeder Wesley Ward’s decision to forgo a trip to Royal Ascot later this month with Saturday Flirt paid big dividends on Sunday at Saratoga after the versatile 3-year-old filly finished full of run down the center of the course to register an easy 3 3/4-length victory over 2-1 favorite Cloe in the $150,000 Soaring Softly Stakes.
The Soaring Softly had originally been carded on the turf, but was switched to a fast main track due to heavy rains earlier in the weekend.
Saturday Flirt, who is owned by Mrs Fitriani Hey, ran at Ascot as a 2-year-old, finishing 10th following a poor start in the Group 2 Norfolk Stakes. Saturday Flirt sandwiched that performance between two victories that came a year apart at Keeneland: a come-from-behind 1 1/4-length maiden special weight tally last spring, and a similarly orchestrated neck decision against entry-level allowance competition to launch her 3-year-old campaign. All three of her previous outings were on turf.
But a last-minute switch to dirt for the Soaring Softly proved little problem for Saturday Flirt, a daughter of Mendelssohn who was ridden for the first time by Junior Alvarado. Settling within easy striking distance of the early leaders following an alert start, Saturday Flirt launched her bid exiting the turn, angled out to the middle of the track turning for home, then responded to vigorous handling to readily run down the leader and win going away.
Cloe, racing with blinkers for the first time off a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Senorita at Santa Anita, contested the early pace, readily edged clear into the stretch, but proved no match for the winner while easily best of the rest. Spirited Boss rallied mildly for third. The stakes-placed Hey Bertie lost all chance, finishing fifth, after stumbling badly at the break.
Saturday Flirt ran 5 1/2 furlongs over the fast track in 1:04.00 and paid $10.60. She earned an 80 Beyer Speed Figure.
“I decided to keep her in after she had breezed so well at Keeneland on the dirt. But this horse was still a little bit of an unknown, you always worry and never know until they do it,” Ward explained when asked about his decision to run his filly after the race came off the grass. “But the track had some moisture in it, which I think was the reason she got over it so well.”
Saturday Flirt was the second horse Alvarado rode to victory for Ward here Sunday along with Diblasi in the third race.
“I’ve been lucky with Junior. He’s not one of the guys I go to, but every time he rides for me he seems to wins” said Ward. “He’s my lucky guy.”
Ward said he had originally thought about taking Saturday Flirt back to Ascot later this month to compete in a listed stakes before choosing to keep her closer to home instead.
“My owner is from England, so we were thinking about going back there, but after looking at the conditions of the race, we opted to stay here," Ward said. “And it worked out for us.”
Indy Bay made her stakes debut a winning one, out-gaming the pacesetting Long Neck Paula and 6-5 favorite Beauty Reigns to capture the $150,000 Jersey Girl, the second 3-year-old filly stakes on Sunday’s card.
Indy Bay was purchased privately by her present connections and turned over to trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. following a second-place finish against restricted maiden company this winter at Oaklawn Park. The daughter of Take Charge Indy won her first two starts after switching barns to earn herself a starting berth in the six-furlong Jersey Girl.
With Irad Ortiz Jr. aboard for the first time, Indy Girl bobbled briefly at the break before recovering to prompt the leader, Long Neck Paula, leaving the turn. Long Neck Paula briefly edged away from Indy Girl upon settling into the stretch before the latter reasserted herself and wore down the leader through the final sixteenth.
Beauty Reigns broke a bit slow, raced at the fear of the compact field in the run down the backstretch, swung wide into the stretch to loom boldly through the furlong grounds only to fall short with her bid at the end.
Indy Bay is owned by the partnership of Mark Cornett’s C Two Racing Stable, Paul Braverman and Timothy Pinch. She gave Ortiz, who entered the day on a 31-race losing streak, his third victory on the card. She paid $6.50 after covering six furlongs over a fast track in 1:09.70 seconds.
“Mark (Cornett) has a knack for buying these kind of horses," Joseph said. “She’s exceeded expectations. She won at Gulfstream, the number was a little slow, but she beat a good field. Then went to Oaklawn to win again. We felt pretty good coming into this race, figurewise, although at the top of the stretch I didn’t feel very good. I thought she was going backwards for a minute. I felt a lot better at the wire.”
Joseph mentioned the Grade 3 Victory Ride as a bridge to get Indy Bay to the Grade 1 Test (August 2) here during the summer.
“She’s trained well and just continues to keep improving. She’s a gutsy filly and I can see her being in the Test,” Joseph said.
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