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‘She’s A Rocket’: Jean Elizabeth Wires Field In Woodbine’s Whimsical Stakes

Jean Elizabeth earned her eighth consecutive stakes victory as she dominated her rivals in the $125,000 Whimsical Stakes (Grade 3) on the first summer Sunday of the Woodbine meet in Ontario, Canada.

The popular shipper returned to the scene of her Sweet Briar Too and Grade 3 Ontario Fashion wins that launched her current streak last fall for trainer Larry Rivelli and co-owners Richard Ravin and Patricia's Hope LLC.

Leaving from inside of her nine foes in the six-furlong sprint for older fillies and mares, Jean Elizabeth darted out for a quick three-length lead and set fractions of :22.36 and :44.78 en route to a one-length victory in 1:09.86. Summer Sunday, Canada's reigning Champion Female Sprinter, chased the winner most of the way and finished third as Painting closed late to steal the runner-up honours.

“She's a rocket,” said winning jockey David Moran. “I wasn't expecting her to be that quick with her ears pricked down the back.”

Moran noted the speedy mare was just toying with her rivals.

“She just pricks her ears and I think she just waits for a bit of company to go on again.”

Jean Elizabeth, who set a stakes record last time out in February's Lightning City at Tampa Bay Downs and is targeting the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, paid $3.40 to win. The five-year-old homebred daughter of Adios Charlie and Rooney Doodle now boasts a career record reading 15-4-2 from 21 starts and more than $680,000 in purse earnings.

Moran, who is a father of nine children with his wife Maria expecting in the coming weeks, took a moment after winning the first graded stakes of the meet to thank his kids for their Father's Day cards and gifts and give a shout out to his own dad back home in Ireland.

He also went on to dedicate the race to a special horseman.

“I want to give a special mention today to Frank Forde – the backbone of horse racing here at Woodbine, one of the grooms – who passed away suddenly last week,” said Moran. “I'd like to dedicate this race to him.”

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Clement Charts Course For Pennine Ridge Winner Decorated Invader

Trainer Christophe Clement was delighted to see Decorated Invader record a second graded stakes victory in Saturday's Grade 2 Pennine Ridge at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., and said that both the Grade 2, $150,000 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame on July 18 and the $500,000 Saratoga Derby Invitational on August 15 at Saratoga Race Course are both likely targets for the Declaration of War colt.

Piloted by Joel Rosario, who later guided Oleksandra to victory in the Grade 1 Jaipur presented by America's Best Racing, Decorated Invader broke sharply from the rail tracking pacesetter Proven Strategies and took command to the inside around the far turn to draw off to a 4 ¾-length victory as the heavy favorite.

“He came out of the race well. There are two stakes at Saratoga. We'll see how he trains, but the plan is to go there,” Clement said. “We'll go there and if he's fine, we'll do both and if he needs the extra time then we can just run in the Saratoga Derby. He looked great this morning.”

Owned by Terry Finley's West Point Thoroughbreds, William Sandbrook, William Freeman and Cheryl Manning, Declaration of War made his 2020 bow when taking the Cutler Bay over the turf on March 28 at Gulfstream Park. A winner of four races all over different surfaces, the colt by Declaration of War took the Grade 1 Summer at Woodbine en route to a fourth-place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf – his lone off-the-board effort.

Oak Bluff Stables' seven-time stakes winning New York-bred Therapist is a candidate for either the $100,000 Kingston going 1 1/16 miles on July 5 or the $75,000 Banrock going six furlongs.

“He just worked this morning with Irad Ortiz, Jr. and looked great,” Clement said. “He has two options both for New York-breds either the Kingston or the Banrock a few days later.”

The son of Freud was victorious against open company in the last out First Defense, which was his first victory since taking the Elusive Quality last April.

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Galilean, Grinning Tiger Among Nominees For Race Honoring Soi Phet

Galilean and Grinning Tiger, a combined 4-for-4 at Los Alamitos, are among 12 nominees to the $100,000-guaranteed Soi Phet Stakes, a one-mile race for 3-year-olds & up bred or sired in California.

The seventh renewal of the race formerly known as the Bertrando will be run Saturday, June 27, the second day of the Summer Thoroughbred Festival at Los Alamitos in Cypress, Calif.

The race honors Soi Phet, a gelded son of Tizbud trained by Leonard Powell for the Benowitz Family Trust, Mathilde Powell and Paul Viskovich who won five stakes races at Los Alamitos before his retirement at age 11 in 2019. The first of his local victories came in the inaugural Bertrando in 2014 and he won the race again in 2018.

Owned by a partnership that includes West Point Thoroughbreds and trained by John Sadler, Galilean, a 4-year-old son of Uncle Mo, scored in his career debut at Los Alamitos Sept. 22, 2018, then captured the King Glorious Stakes by nine lengths nearly three months later. Both of those victories came for Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer.

Grinning Tiger, who scored a pair of 7-1 upsets in sprints in 2019 in his first two races at Los Alamitos, comes off a shocking gate-to-wire win in the Crystal Water Stakes on the Santa Anita grass June 6.

Owned by Tyree Wolesensky and trained by Anthony Saavedra, the 92-1 stunner was the eighth win in 27 starts for the 5-year-old son of Smiling Tiger.

Other nominees include Brandothebartender, Cono, 4-year-old fillies D's Lovely Sophia and Silk From Heaven, King Abner, fifth in this race a year ago, Lieutenant Dan, Loud Mouth, Lymebyrd, Take the One O One and Three Ay Em.

Entries for the Soi Phet Stakes will be taken Wednesday, June 24.

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Glatt: Kentucky Derby ‘On Our Radar’ After Barrera Win By Collusion Illusion

Although it appeared Bob Baffert's Ragtime Blues may have had matters in-hand at the top of the stretch, the Mark Glatt-conditioned Collusion Illusion had only begun to fight, as he kicked into high gear and motored to an impressive 3 ¼-length tally in Saturday's Grade III, $100,000 Lazaro Barrera Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif. Ridden by Flavien Prat, the bay colt by Twirling Candy got 6 ½ furlongs in 1:16.03 and has his connections thinking about the first Saturday in September.

Breaking alertly from the rail in a field of five, Collusion Illusion was unhurried early as Phantom Boss and Ragtime Blues disputed the early running heading to the far turn. With Mike Smith encouraging Ragtime Blues, he assumed command a half mile out and appeared to get the jump on Collusion Illusion as he opened up a three length advantage a quarter mile from home.

“He had me a little worried there at the top of the stretch, but I think he's a pretty smart horse and Flavien has a lot of confidence in him,” said Glatt. He's very athletic, there's no wasted action in his stride.”

Is the Kentucky Derby on Sept. 5 a possibility?

“It's on our radar,” said Glatt, whose horse appeared to gallop out in front around the Club House turn by half a football field. “We paid the late supplement ($3,000). I don't know what's next. I just wanted to get by today. We'll need to stretch him out and figure out how to get enough points.”

A stirring three-length allowance winner going six furlongs off a 7 ½ month layoff on May 17, Collusion Illusion was off at 2-5 and paid $2.80, $2.10 and $2.10.

Owned by Dan Agnew, Rodney Orr, Jerry Schneider and John Xitco, Collusion Illusion, who is out of the First Dude mare Natalie Grace, picked up his second graded stakes win and now has four wins from five career starts. With the winner's share of $60,000, he increased his earnings to $248,751.

“Mike Smith opened up a little at the turn, so I wasn't super confident, but I knew as soon as we turned for home, if we switched leads, he would give me a good kick,” said Prat, who is now three for three aboard “Collusion.”

Ragtime Blues, who had won two of his three starts and was trying stakes competition for the first time, offered little resistance late while finishing 3 ¼ lengths in front of longshot Howbeit. Off at 2-1, Ragtime Blues returned $2.20 and $2.10.

Off at 43-1 with Umberto Rispoli, Howbeit paid $3.60 to show.

Fractions on the race were 21.90, 44.73 and 1:09.66.

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