It took about 45 minutes for Justify to add to his Breeders' Cup grab, as HARD TO JUSTIFY (–Instant Reflex, by Quality Road) managed to secure a handy position from gate 12, relaxed kindly through the middle fractions and kept on very gamely to hold off an equally game try from the Donnacha O'Brien-trained Porta Fortuna (Ire) (Caravaggio) to give trainer Chad Brown a remarkable sixth success in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita, where he won his very first Breeders' Cup race some 15 years ago in the same event with Maram.
The $190,000 Keeneland September yearling, who earned her way into the Breeders' Cup with a tally in the GIII Miss Grillo S. at Aqueduct last month, was guided down towards the inside by Flavien Prat to sit just off the flank of Dreamfyre (Flameaway), herself the all-the-way winner of the local prep, the Oct. 8 Surfer Girl S. Asked to confront the front-runner approaching the entrance to the stretch, Hard to Justify edged in front and battled on bravely for the victory as Porta Fortuna was just beaten. Favored She Feels Pretty, a daughter of GI Breeders' Cup Mile hero Karakontie (Jpn), was unable to get in from her high draw and was therefore consigned to a four-wide trip, but she, too, boxed on determinedly to finish not far away. It was a 17th Breeders' Cup victory overall for Brown and fifth for Prat, who was aboard Flightline (Tapit) in that history-making Classic last fall.
Hard to Justify wins the $1 Million #BreedersCup Juvenile Fillies Turf on #FutureStarsFriday at @santaanitapark! Cheers to all of the connections! pic.twitter.com/f91gXEyJQz
— Breeders' Cup (@BreedersCup) November 3, 2023
Friday, Santa Anita
BREEDERS' CUP JUVENILE FILLIES TURF-GI, $920,000, Santa Anita, 11-3, 2yo, f, 1mT, 1:34.42, fm.
1–HARD TO JUSTIFY, 122, f, 2, by Justify
1st Dam: Instant Reflex (GSP), by Quality Road
2nd Dam: Without Delay, by Seeking the Gold
3rd Dam: Slow Down, by Seattle Slew
1ST GRADE I WIN. ($190,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP). O-Wise Racing LLC; B-Yeguada Centurion S.L. (KY); T-Chad C. Brown; J-Flavien Prat. $520,000. Lifetime Record: 3-3-0-0, $687,750. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Porta Fortuna (Ire), 122, f, 2, by Caravaggio
1st Dam: Too Precious (Ire), by Holy Roman Emperor (Ire)
2nd Dam: Delicate Charm (Ire), by High Chaparral (Ire)
3rd Dam: Kantikoy (GB), by Alzao
O-Medallion Racing, Parkland Thoroughbreds, Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Barry Fowler; B-Whisperview Trading Ltd (Ire); T-Donnacha O'Brien. $170,000.
3–She Feels Pretty, 122, f, 2, by Karakontie (Jpn)
1st Dam: Summer Sweet, by More Than Ready
2nd Dam: Summer Solstice (Ire), by Caerleon
3rd Dam: Summer Sonnet (GB), by Baillamont
($240,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP). O-Lael Stables; B-Payson Stud Inc (KY); T-Cherie DeVaux. $90,000.
Margins: HF, HD, 3/4. Odds: 9.10, 3.80, 3.50.
Also Ran: Content (Ire), Austere, Buchu, Carla's Way (Ire), Life's an Audible, Dreamfyre, Laulne (Fr), Les Pavots (Ire), Flattery, Gala Brand, Buttercream Babe. Scratched: Go With Gusto, Mo Fox Givin.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
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