Godolphin homebred Matareya took control in early stretch and bounded away to win the $400,000 Beaumont Stakes (G3) by open lengths Sunday at Keeneland.
Time for the about seven furlongs for 3-year-old fillies on the track's Beard Course was 1:27.55.
With Flavien Prat aboard for trainer Brad Cox, Matareya rated in second place, about one length back, as Lady Scarlet set the pace through a half mile in :46.61. Matareya was urged closer as Lady Scarlet held command by just a half-length nearing the home turn, then made her winning move when Prat gave the cue near the three-sixteenths pole. Driving past that rival, she romped away and was geared down in the final stages.
Matareya won by 8 1/2 lengths and improved her record to 3-2-0 from six career starts while notching her first stakes win. The 11-10 favorite, she returned $4.
“She broke really well and rated nice,” Prat said. “I was on cruise control all the way around.
Radio Days, last in the seven-horse field through a half mile, rallied strongly to be up for second, finishing 1 3/4 lengths in front of third-place finisher Reagan's Decision. Lady Scarlet faded to fourth.
Radio Days' rider, Joel Rosario, said he just took his time with the filly in the early stage.
“I took her inside for a little bit, and she handled everything well and kept running,” he said. “She tried hard and came with a little bit of a run so I'm happy with that.”
Matareya, a Pioneerof the Nile filly, was second in the 6 ½-furlong Fern Creek Stakes last November at Churchill Downs before meeting filly sensation Secret Oath in December in an Oaklawn Park allowance race while trying one mile for the first time. After finishing second, 8 ½ lengths behind Secret Oath, she made her 2022 debut Feb. 26 at Fair Grounds and was returned to sprinting, dominating. Going 5 1/2 furlongs in allowance company she tallied a 5 1/4-length win after leading wire to wire.
Cox credited the cutback in distance to Matareya's improvement.
“We were hoping she'd go long,” he said. “She trained like she would. Flavien made the comment that he didn't see why she wouldn't. But she's kind of shown us she enjoys the cutback, so we'll probably stick to one turn for now.
“We obviously picked up a Grade 3 today. It's huge for the pedigree (Pioneerof the Nile out of Innovative Idea, by Bernardini) and huge for the broodmare band at (breeder/owner) Godolphin, which is one of the best in the world. It was a big win, so we'll let the dust settle and see how she comes out of it, but those are obviously races we'll look forward to and try to work back from, and – who knows? – maybe try to get her to the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (G1) here at Keeneland this fall.”
The Beaumont offered 17 points as the final stop on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks (G1) on a 10-4-2-1 scale to the first- through fourth-place finishers.
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