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Fair Maiden Rallies In La Brea, Giving Jockey Ricky Gonzalez First Grade 1 Win

In a streak of Godolphin Blue, the Eoin Harty-trained Fair Maiden blew by her competition late to take Saturday's Grade 1, $300,000 La Brea Stakes by 2 ¼ lengths under upstart Ricky Gonzalez. Fair Maiden, in her eighth career start, got seven furlongs in 1:22.69 on the Santa Anita main track in Arcadia, Calif.

Breaking from post position nine in a field of 10 sophomore fillies, Fair Maiden was mid-pack, about three lengths off the lead approaching the top of the lane while following the Bob Baffert-trained Golden Principal. From there, Fair Maiden, who was six-deep off the turn, easily reeled in Golden Principal for an impressive victory, which provided Gonzalez with his first-ever Grade 1 triumph.

“Eoin (Harty) said she was doing really really well, to just put her in the race,” Gonzalez said. “There were quite a few speeds. 'Just put her in the race get her clear and get her to the outside.' We hit the stretch and as soon as we hit the stretch she went on the outside and was just full of run.

On recording his first Grade 1 victory, Gonzalez said, “I was just so happy and excited, to just ride these kinds of horses, it feels great. I'm very thankful to Eoin and all the trainers for all the opportunities.”

Most recently fourth in an ungraded six furlong stakes at Keeneland Nov. 7, Fair Maiden was off at 20-1 and paid $43.20, $18.60 and $10.00.

Owned and bred by Godolphin, LLC in Kentucky, Fair Maiden is by Street Boss out of the Smart Strike mare Shieldmaiden. A minor stakes winner on turf in her third career start at Woodbine in August 2019, Fair Maiden collected her first graded stakes win on Saturday and improved her overall mark to 8-4-1-1. With the winner's share of $180,000, she increased her earnings to $321,278.

One of four Baffert trainees in the field, Golden Principal was off at 12-1 and paid $13.60 and $7.40 while finishing 1 ½ lengths in front of her stablemate Merneith.

Ridden by John Velazquez, Merneith was the second choice in the betting at 7-2 and paid $4.00 to show while finishing three quarters of length in front of post time favorite Finite, who is trained by Steve Asmussen.

Fractions on the race were 21.88, 44.59 and 1:09.92.

“It's just the way the things pan out when you get to that number two level. It's hard to find a race against really competitive company,” Harty said, when asked why he switched from synthetic surfaces and turf to dirt this year. “I didn't want to keep taking her up to Woodbine so I found a spot in Churchill (winning a six-furlong allowance race) and that was a big question mark as to whether she would handle it there and she did. She was super professional that day and gave me a lot of confidence in bringing her out here for this.

“I've been watching Ricky ride since he came down here, and I think he's the next superstar. He's brave and he puts his horse in a spot to win. I grab him in every time I can because I think he's a world-class rider, and today was his first Grade 1 win.”

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Kiss Today Goodbye Surprises San Antonio Foes With Last-To-First Run

On a blissfully sunny opening day in Arcadia, Calif., Kiss Today Goodbye, a 15-1 longshot trained by Eric Kruljac, came rolling from dead last to take Santa Anita's Grade 2, $200,000 San Antonio Stakes by a half length under Hall of Famer Mike Smith.

Breaking from post position two, Smith had his mount in-hand going into the first turn and he saved every inch of ground at the rail until the top of the stretch, where he angled to the four-path and rallied to out-finish the Richard Baltas-trained Idol late.

Unplaced on turf in both the Grade 2 Del Mar Derby on Sept. 6 and the Twilight Derby at Santa Anita two starts back on Oct. 18, Kiss Today Goodbye exited a solid first condition allowance win over the Del Mar main track on Nov. 14 but was trying graded stakes competition on dirt for the first time today.

Ridden for the first time by Smith, he paid $33.60, $10.60 and $6.60 in a field of six 3-year-olds and up.

“I was impressed with his last race and I wasn't even riding him. He ran by me in that last race,” said Smith. “I thank Eric Kruljac for the opportunity of riding him and for his great training job. The race was shaping up for him with the speed up front and when it came time to run, he took off. I just guided him around the track.”

Owned by John Sondereker, Kiss Today Goodbye, a 3-year-old Kentucky-bred colt by Cairo Prince out of the Heatseeker mare Savvy Hester, collected his first stakes win while improving his overall mark to 10-3-0-3. With the winner's share of $120,000, he increased his earnings to $230,802.

Ridden by Gabriel Saez, Idol was taken off the pace and sat fourth into the first turn, was a joint second inside favored Mucho Gusto heading to the three furlong pole and kept to his task at the rail late while finishing as though he'll appreciate added distance.

The second choice at 4-1, Idol finished three quarters of a length better than Take the One O One and paid $5.20 and $5.20.

The early pacesetter under Jose Valdivia, Jr., Take the One O One was off at 29-1 and paid $14.40 to show while finishing a length and one quarter in front of 1-2 favorite Mucho Unusual.

Fractions on the race were 23.83, 47.81, 1:11.42 and 1:36.83.

“He was always very immature early on,” Krujak said of Kiss Today Goodbye. “It just took him longer to get to where he is and I think he is really just beginning to mature.

“About four races back he got absolutely sandblasted and was basically eased in the race. I basically told (Mike), 'he's better with the kickback but it was a factor that day.' As you can see when Mike came back, he ate the dirt, the colt has put it all together and Mike gave him an absolutely perfect ride. The pace gods were on our side.

“This was absolutely an owner's decision. This is a really nice condition race that we are no longer eligible for in about three days. John (Sondereker) uses Thorograph and says his numbers looked great but he thought he would move way forward. John said his sheet numbers were going up and up, and he is a numbers guy. The horse is trained like that but as a trainer I look at the older horses and see what they have already done, I go, 'Oh my God what are we doing.' But he was right! It sure set up well, and the two scratches helped.”

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Vigilantes Way, Half Sister To Mr Speaker, Takes Tropical Park Oaks On Front End

Phipps Stables' Vigilantes Way stole away to victory in Saturday's $75,000 Tropical Park Oaks at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., after jockey Julien Leparoux took things into his own hands with a well-judged front-running ride.

The Tropical Park Oaks, a 1 1/16-mile turf stakes for 3-year-old fillies, highlighted Saturday's 11-race program along with the $75,000 Tropical Park Derby, a 1 1/16 turf stakes for 3-year-olds, and the $75,000 H. Allen Jerkens, a two-mile turf stakes for 3-year-olds and up.

The Shug McGaughey-trained Vigilantes Way ($7), by Medaglia d'Oro, broke alertly to take the lead heading into the first turn and never looked back, resisting mild early pressure from longshot Blue Mistress and pulling away to a 2 ¼-length victory in 1:40.61 built on fractions of 23.91 and 47.66 seconds for the first half-mile.

A half-sister to Mr Speaker, who captured the 2013 Dania Beach (G3) over the Gulfstream turf, Vigilantes Way was the second stakes winner of the day for Julien Leparoux, who guided Sir Anthony to an upset victory in the Jerkens.

“Nice day today, beautiful to win two stakes. The horses ran great, so we're happy with that, it's been a great day,” Leparoux said. “I was not expecting to be on the lead, but she broke very sharp and she was doing it very nicely. She relaxed for me on the backside and from there she was very comfortable the whole time. When I asked her in the stretch, she won nicely.”

Ask Bailey closed to finish second, a nose ahead of Speaktomeofsummer.

Vigilantes Way registered her first stakes victory Saturday in four starts on turf, which include an allowance win and two stakes placing.

“She's a half-sister to Mr. Speaker and he liked the grass, so we always had that in mind,” McGaughey said. “She's been a pleasant surprise. As a yearling, she was a little bit of a small, immature filly, and she's still small. But she's matured out and her races have all been very good.”

McGaughey said Vigilantes Way would be pointed toward another stakes at Gulfstream.

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Eres Tu Helps Toledo Complete Christmastide Stakes Day Hat Trick In Allaire Du Pont At Laurel

Edward Seltzer and Beverly Anderson's homebred Eres Tu kept her perfect comeback season intact and became a graded-stakes winner in the process with a popular one-length triumph in Saturday's $150,000 Allaire du Pont (G3) at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md.

The 27th running of the 1 1/8-mile du Pont for fillies and mares 3 and up, traditionally contested over Preakness (G1) weekend, was moved following racing's return from the coronavirus pause to serve as the headliner on a Christmastide Day program that featured eight stakes worth $850,000 in purses.

Named for the avid sportswoman and horsewoman best known as the owner of Hall of Famer Kelso, the unprecedented and unsurpassed winner of five consecutive Horse of the Year championships from 1960-64, the du Pont was the last graded-stakes event of 2020 on the East Coast.

Eres Tu ($3.40), trained by Arnaud Delacour, earned his second straight stakes victory and gave jockey Jevian Toledo his third win of the afternoon and second in a stakes. Toledo also captured the $100,000 Dave's Friend for sprinters 3 and up aboard Whereshetoldmetogo.

The winning time was 1:50.57 over a fast main track. Twixt Stakes winner Wicked Awesome closed to be second, holding off Another Broad, fourth in last year's du Pont, by a head. They were followed by Landing Zone, Needs Supervision, Ice Princess and Alittlelesstalk.

Eres Tu has now won all three of her starts since joining Delacour's string at the Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md., over the summer. She had won one of six starts for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen and run third to subsequent Kentucky Oaks (G1) winner Serengeti Empress in the Rachel Alexandra (G2), and also finished fourth to eventual Grade 1 winner Street Band in the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) last year.

It would be another 19 months before Eres Tu would race again, and winning an open entry-level allowance at Keeneland Oct. 14. Last time out, the 4-year-old daughter of Malibu Moon became a stakes winner in the Thirty Eight Go Go Nov. 28 at Laurel.

Multiple stakes winner Needs Supervision, a winner over Eres Tu in the 2019 Silverbulletday and fitted with blinkers for the first time, got out quickly and took the field of seven through a quarter-mile in 24.61 seconds chased by Landing Zone and Eres Tu, who Toledo kept in the clear three wide.

The three horses rounded the far turn together before Eres Tu began to edge away as her main combatants dropped back. At the same time, Wicked Awesome began to launch a bid on the far outside along with Another Broad to make a late bid, but Eres Tu had plenty left to repel the challengers.

“I know [Needs Supervision] was going to be a little bit fast, so I let my filly get away from there because I want to be in a good position. So, I let [Needs Supervision] go and then I came around and I was in a perfect spot the whole way,” Toledo said.

“Turning for home, she just had her ears up waiting for horses,” he added. “I got a little bit worried because she didn't want to switch leads and I knew they were coming, but she got the job done. She's a nice filly.”

Notes: In addition to Toledo's three wins, trainer Claudio Gonzalez won twice with Miss Leslie ($7) in the $100,000 Anne Arundel County for 2-year-old fillies and Harpers First Ride ($2.40) in the $100,000 Native Dancer for 3-year-olds and up … The 20-Cent Rainbow 6 (Races 4-9) saw its jackpot carryover swell to $14,260.39 for Sunday's nine-race program. Multiple tickets with all six winners Saturday each returned $30.60. There will also be a carryover of $1,696.86 in the $1 Super Hi-5 for Race 1.

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