SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Trainer Jorge Abreu typically doesn’t like seeing his horses on the lead early on in a race. But a half-mile into Saturday’s Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks, Abreu was quite content when he saw Scottish Lassie in front of three rivals going a half-mile in an easy 48.04 seconds.
“When I saw the 48, I said ‘we’re home-free,’ “ Abreu said.
Abreu just didn’t know how home-free. Scottish Lassie had a one-length advantage after the opening half-mile and, when she came to the finish line at sun-splashed Saratoga, Scottish Lassie was a whopping 15 1/2 lengths clear of Immersive, last year’s 2-year-old filly champion in the $500,000 CCA Oaks.
“Turning for home, I was just walking down the stairs crying,” Abreu said. “On the backside, when they made a little run at her [and didn’t go by], I said there’s no way we’re going to get beat now, When we drew away, that was it.”
Scottish Lassie had done something similar last year when she won the Grade 1 Frizette at Aqueduct by nine lengths. That day, she came from off the pace.
In the CCA Oaks, there was no speed after the expected pacesetter La Cara was forced to scratch because the barn in which she is stabled was placed under a quarantine due to a suspected case of strangles in another horse stabled in that barn. Sweet Seraphine also was scratched due to an infection, reducing the Coaching Club to a four-horse field.
Abreu said he did not instruct Rosario to put Scottish Lassie on the lead.
“I didn’t give him any instructions, I just told him ride your race,” Abreu said. “You know that’s not me being on the lead, that’s him.”
Rosario said he came out running on Scottish Lassie just to prompt Manny Franco on Immersive to see what tactics he would take. Going into the first turn, Franco took a hold of Immersive to try and get outside of Scottish Lassie. All that did was let Scottish Lassie get comfortable on the lead.
“Going into the first turn, he decided to take back, then I went,” Rosario said. “She was very comfortable, as soon as we got to the three-quarter [pole] on the backside, she had her ears up and relaxed. I was worried, like Jorge, that I was on the lead, but she was doing it easy, nice.”
Conversely, Franco had to ask Immersive just to keep her position. She couldn’t.
“She was comfortable on the backside, but by the half-mile pole I had to go all-in with her,” Franco said. “The winner opened up on me and I didn’t have much under me. She wasn’t there for me.”
Dry Powder was closer to Immersive at the eighth pole then she was at the finish, finishing six lengths behind the runner-up and 21 1/2 lengths behind the winner. Take Charge Milady was last, beaten 24 1/2 lengths.
Scottish Lassie, a daughter of McKinzie, covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:50.23 (99 Beyer Speed Figure) and returned $6.70 as the second choice.
Scottish Lassie has now given Abreu both of his career Grade 1 victories. That’s made more special by the fact he picked this filly out at the Ocala Breeders’s Sales auction of 2-year-olds in training in March 2024 and had to give only $85,000 to get her. Abreu still owns a piece of her, along with Parkland Thoroughbreds, Sportsmen Stable, Photos Finish LLC, and Corms Racing Stable.
“It’s more special because I bought the horse, I picked the horse out and I make the call with this horse,” Abreu said.
Abreu said he would wait a week and see how Scottish Lassie is doing before he makes the call about running her in the Grade 1 Alabama at 1 1/4 miles on Aug. 16.
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