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Con Lima Box to Wire in Saratoga Oaks

Sunday, Saratoga
SARATOGA OAKS INVITATIONAL S.-GIII, $700,000, Saratoga, 8-8, 3yo, f, 1 3/16mT, 1:54.42, fm.
1–CON LIMA, 121, f, 3, by Commissioner
1st Dam: Second Street City (SW, $209,843), by Consolidator
2nd Dam: Trix City, by Carson City
3rd Dam: Always Nettie, by Vice Regent
($15,000 Wlg '18 KEENOV; $19,000 RNA Ylg '19 KEESEP;
$22,000 RNA 2yo '20 OBSMAR). O-Eclipse Thoroughbred
Partners, Joseph F. Graffeo, Eric Nikolaus Del Toro & Troy
Johnson; B-Lisa Kuhlmann (TX); T-Todd A. Pletcher; J-Flavien
Prat. $375,000. Lifetime Record: 13-7-5-0, $884,865. Werk
Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross
pedigree.
2–Higher Truth (Ire), 121, f, 3, Galileo (Ire)–Wannabe Better
(Ire), by Duke of Marmalade (Ire). (500,000gns Ylg '19
TATOCT). O-Michael J. Ryan, Jeff Drown, & Team Hanley;
B-Churchtown House Stud (IRE); T-Chad C. Brown.
$130,000.
3–Creative Flair (Ire), 121, f, 3, Dubawi (Ire)–Hidden Gold
(Ire), by Shamardal. O/B-Godolphin, LLC (IRE); T-Charles
Appleby. $70,000.
Margins: 3/4, 1 1/4, 1 1/4. Odds: 3.05, 7.40, 3.20.
Also Ran: Plum Ali, Gam's Mission, Out of Sorts, Messidor (Ire), Rocky Sky (Ire).

Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Con Lima was afforded an easy lead under Flavien Prat, opened up in the stretch and held sway late to annex the GIII Saratoga Oaks Sunday at the Spa.

Originally just a $15,000 Keeneland November weanling buy, the dark bay was privately purchased out of a sharp main-track graduation for trainer Carlos David last July at Gulfstream and was runner-up in the off-turf P.G. Johnson S. and Our Dear Peg S. Scoring a wire-to-wire 5 1/4-length success in her grass bow Dec. 12 at Gulfstream, she repeated in the Ginger Brew S. and was second in the GIII Sweetest Chant S. before being elevated into a GIII Herecomesthebride S. victory via disqualification. Taking one more crack on dirt in the GII Gulfstream Park Oaks, she faded to fourth after setting a slow pace, her only finish out of the exacta thus far, but bounced back when returned to the lawn with triumphs in the Honey Ryder S. and GIII Wonder Again S.

Just run down late when second in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational S. last out, Con Lima was made a narrow favorite over Godolphin invader Creative Flair here and broke a bit outwardly. Easing her way to the front as no one else took the initiative, she clicked off comfortable fractions of :23.64, :50.02 and 1:14.34 with ears pricked. Turning aside a brief bid from Gam's Mission (Noble Mission {GB}) past the three-sixteenths pole, she skipped clear into the final furlong as Higher Truth came off the rail to take her shot. Jumping back to her left lead at the sixteenth marker, it briefly appeared that Con Lima was in danger, but Prat kept her to task to score by a fairly comfortable margin in the end.

“I was analyzing the race beforehand and we were the only speed but I wasn't 100% sure with a couple of the Euros if they would show some initiative,” said winning trainer Todd Pletcher, capping off a weekend that started with his Hall of Fame induction. “I left it in Flavien's hands and Plan A was to break well and see if anybody would try to take the lead away from us and if they didn't, we'd be happy to have it. It worked out really well. He just gradually got up there instead of having to hustle her and use her. She relaxed really well. You could see when she turned up the backside and her ears were flicking back and forth that she was in a happy zone.”

“The speed was pretty much me and the Godolphin filly and it seems she broke a step slow,” said Prat. “I broke better than her and I ended up on the lead. Going to the first turn I felt really comfortable. I was really pleased with the way she was traveling and I felt we were doing some easy fractions. She really kicked on well. I got her ready to kick and she really did. When she swapped leads, she responded well from that point.”

Pedigree Notes:

One of nine stakes winners and three graded stakes winners for 2014 GI Belmont S. runner-up Commissioner, Con Lima is the first foal to race out of her stakes-winning dam. She is followed by a yearling Point of Entry colt named Pico de Gallo and a weanling colt by Lord Nelson. Second Street City was bred to Game Winner this spring.

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Con Lima Parlays Pocket Trip Into Wonder Again Victory

The ultra-consistent Texas-bred Con Lima added Thursday's Grade 3 Wonder Again Stakes to her resume with a perfect ride from jockey Flavien Prat over Belmont Park's turf course. The 3-year-old daughter of Commissioner saved ground early behind a slow pace, then had plenty left in the stretch to post an 8-1 upset over the fast-finishing Plum Ali, winning by a half-length at the wire. Trained by Todd Pletcher, Con Lima ran nine furlongs over the turf course rated “good” in 1:50.84.

Con Lima is owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Joseph Graffeo, Del Toro, Eric Nicklaus, and Troy Johnson.

“She didn't seem to mind the turf,” Pletcher said. “It's encouraging to see that she might stay a mile and a quarter. We knew Jouster was the quicker of the two, so I told Flavien to just stalk her and it worked out well. She kicked on. She's shown she can do it both ways now.”

Con Lima's stablemate Jouster was quickest out of the starting gate and established a two-length lead heading into the clubhouse turn, while Con Lima was able to secure second with a perfect spot along the rail. Jouster, the 3-1 co-favorite, set a slow pace of :25.42 and :51.49, but was unable to hold off the rally of Con Lima when Prat switched her out in the stretch.

Prat timed his rally perfectly with Con Lima, striking the lead at the eighth pole and holding off the late runs of Plum Ali and Gift List by about a half-length on the wire. Jouster held on to finish fourth, while Fluffy Socks was fifth.

“We had a good trip,” Prat said. “She broke well. It took me a little time to get her to relax, but she finally did down the backside. She responded really well when I asked her to come home.”

Bred in Texas by Lisa Kuhlmann, Con Lima is out of the stakes-winning Consolidator mare Second Street City. She sold for $15,000 as a weanling at the Keeneland November sale, and didn't achieve her reserve in two subsequent sales appearances. Con Lima was second on debut and won at second asking, both for trainer Carlos David. Eclipse bought in after that and the filly was transferred to Pletcher's barn, where she proceeded to earn back-to-back stakes placings on the dirt.

Switched to the dirt in 2021, Con Lima won the Ginger Brew Stakes, ran second in the G3 Sweetest Chant, and won the G3 Herecomesthebride. After a fourth in the G3 Gulfstream Oaks, she came back to win the Honey Ryder Stakes in early May. Overall, Con Lima has a record of six wins and four seconds from 11 starts, with earnings of over $380,000.

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Con Lima Awarded Herecomesthebride Via DQ Of Spanish Loveaffair

Con Lima went from bridesmaid to bride Saturday at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., , where the Todd Pletcher-trained daughter of Commissioner finished second but was placed first in the $100,000 Herecomesthebride (G3) via the disqualification of first-place finisher Spanish Loveaffair.

The Herecomesthebride, a 1 1/16-mile turf stakes for 3-year-old fillies, kicked off a 14-race program with nine stakes worth more than $1.4 million, headlined by the $300,000 Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth (G2), a key prep for the $750,000 Curlin Florida Derby (G1) presented by Hill n' Dale Farm at Xalapa.

Con Lima ($6), who finished second in the Jan. 30 Sweetest Chant (G3) after setting the early pace, rallied from well off the early pace to finish a well-beaten second behind Spanish Loveaffair, the 8-5 favorite who drew off to finish first by 2 ¾ lengths.

However, the stewards subsequently ruled following a lengthy inquiry that Spanish Loveaffair interfered with eventual fourth-place finisher I Get It leaving the backstretch, placing the Mark Casse trainee from first to fourth.

Mail Order set the pace under Junior Alvarado, producing fractions of 23.80 and 48.10 seconds for the first half-mile with Joy of Painting and Spanish Loveaffair in close attendance. I Get it advanced quickly on the rail along the backstretch to slip inside Spanish Loveaffair but dropped back several lengths after bumping with the favorite. Spanish Loveaffair would go on to sweep to the lead with a three-wide move into the stretch to prevail by a comfortable margin. Con Lima rallied four-wide on the turn to finish second, a length ahead of Joy of Painting, who finished a nose ahead of re-rallying I Get It.

“Our plan was to go to the lead but the filly, unfortunately, didn't break that good, said Irad Ortiz Jr. “After that I just had to go to Plan B. That wasn't even our Plan B. It was Plan C, I guess. She relaxed and just sat and waited for me. I had to start working on her a little early, but she performed well and kept coming. [Spanish Loveaffair] was a better filly today, but she's a very good filly.”

Spanish Loveaffair, who was making her first start since finishing sixth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, ran 1 1/16 miles over a firm turf course in 1:41.30.

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Con Lima Never Looks Back Winning Ginger Brew At Gulfstream

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Joseph Graffeo, Eric Nikolaus Del Toro and Troy Johnson's Con Lima continued to show her affinity for the turf with a front-running triumph in Saturday's $75,000 Ginger Brew at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The one-mile Ginger Brew for 3-year-old fillies was the fourth of five stakes worth $400,000 in purses on an 11-race program highlighted by Mutasaabeq's victory in the $100,000 Mucho Macho Man for 3-year-olds, the start of Gulfstream's road to the March 28 Florida Derby (G1).

It was the first career stakes victory for Con Lima ($6.20), a daughter of Commissioner who finished second in back-to-back stakes taken off the turf last fall – the P.G. Johnson at Saratoga and Our Dear Peggy at Gulfstream. The winning time was 1:35.23 over a firm turf course.

“I think she's a quality filly that handles both surfaces, but definitely seems to have found her home especially on the Gulfstream turf course here,” winning trainer Todd Pletcher said. “She's got good natural speed and it played to her strengths today.”

A similar gate-to-wire winner in her grass debut going one mile on the Gulfstream turf Dec. 12, Con Lima was once again eager for the lead in the Ginger Brew under jockey Paco Lopez, setting fractions of 23.95 seconds for the first quarter-mile and 47.55 for the half, pressed to her outside by Karakatsie with Inthewinnerscircle rating inside.

Karakatsie moved within a half-length on the turn but Con Lima remained in control and began to separate from the field once straightened for home, running six furlongs in 1:11.45 and drawing clear by 3 ¼ lengths. Honey Pants, the 3-2 favorite, edged Designer Ready for second while I Get It, who got squeezed far back early, rallied late to get up for fourth, snapping her three-race win streak. Inthewinnerscircle, Karakatsie, Viking Queen and Sweet Pearl completed the order of finish.

“Todd told me to judge the race, if she was keen to go or if we needed to sit behind, to go with her,” Lopez said. “She broke well and was a little strong. I had to hold her a little bit, but no one pressured us. I couldn't believe it, so I let her go and my filly finished very well.”

Con Lima now has two wins and two seconds in four starts since joining Pletcher's string last summer. Pletcher had three wins on the day, including Mutasaabeq in the Mucho Macho Man and 3-year-old maiden Winfromwithin in Race 8.

“We handle her carefully. She's got a lot of energy and we try to keep it channeled in the right direction,” Pletcher said of Con Lima. “She was actually very good in the paddock today. We stayed inside and stayed with the pony. She warmed up really nice, was good in the gate and broke alertly, and kind of towed Paco around there. He had a tougher time getting her back to the winner's circle than he did around the track.”

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