The complexion of the race changed when Chad Brown scratched Carl Spackler (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}), who sported a field-high 92 Beyer in his last. Mo Stash, away cleanly from stall seven in the Transylvania, shook free of the others and slid down to the rail to mark the first quarter a length clear in :23.69. The field began stringing out, but Mo Stash kept his position, getting the half in :48.41 and the three-quarters in 1:13.84. He was joined by a host of challengers in the stretch only to repel all, including Nagirroc, who briefly looked as though he had the winner measured.

“There was a lot of pacing going on up there and I thought, 'Oh, geez, now we're going to have to set the pace,'” said winning trainer Vicki Oliver, who won the first Keeneland stakes of her career in the Transylvania. “We were kind of getting pushed down the backside, and then [jockey Luis] Saez slipped away and got out on his own, and he could relax a little bit, and when he turned for home prevailed on and ran a really good race.”

Tried for the first time beyond a mile in the Transylvania, Mo Stash spent the majority of his 2-year-old campaign sprinting. A maiden winner at Ellis last August, he's done some of his best work at Keeneland. He finished second in the Lexington oval's Indian Summer S. last October at 5 1/2 furlongs which propelled him to a fourth in the one-mile Breeders' Cup. Freshened until Mar. 11, he reappeared again at a mile in Tampa Bay's Columbia S. and secured a runner-up spot behind a 91 Beyer performance by Talk of the Nation (Quality Road). Mo Stash has run exclusively on the grass.

As for what's next, Oliver added: “It's still going to be a question mark about how far he will go, but today it looked like he just kept going and could go another sixteenth. That might just be his running style. There's a lot of races out there between a mile, mile-and-an-eighth. We'll just have to pick them out as we go.”

Pedigree Notes:

Ashford stallion Mo Town, winner of the GI Hollywood Derby on the lawn and the GII Remsen S. on the dirt, has sired three black-type winners in his first crop with Mo Stash being his first to win or place in a graded event. Mo Stash is out of a mare by the late Smart Strike, whose 159 stakes winners out of his daughters include a number of champions as well as reigning GI Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike (Keen Ice).

Mo Stash is the second stakes performer for his dam, Making Mark Money, whose 2021 GII Tampa Bay Derby runner-up and GIII Sam F. Davis third Hidden Stash (Constitution) also runs for BBN Racing connections and is also trained by Oliver. The 5-year-old's most recent start was a third in an optional allowance at Tampa Feb. 21 after an eight-month layoff. He ran 14th in the 2021 GI Kentucky Derby. It was at the 2021 Keeneland September sale that BBN picked up Mo Stash for $130,000. Making Mark Money's only foal since is a yearling colt by Practical Joke. She was bred to McKinzie for 2023.

Making Mark Money's granddam is the wonderful La Affirmed, a half to champion Outstandingly (Exclusive Native) and dam of four graded winners. Among her descendants are GISWs Sky Mesa (Pulpit), Maxfield (Street Sense), and Matareya (Pioneerof the Nile). The female line traces directly to La Troienne through her granddaughter Busanda, who contributed mightily to the breed, not the least through her Horse of the Year son and stellar sire Buckpasser (Tom Fool).

KENTUCKY UTILITIES TRANSYLVANIA S.-GIII, $396,250, Keeneland, 4-7, 3yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:43.05, gd.
1–MO STASH, 118, c, 3, by Mo Town
                1st Dam: Making Mark Money, by Smart Strike
                2nd Dam: Kapsiki, by Danzig
                3rd Dam: La Affirmed, by Affirmed
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($130,000
Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-BBN Racing, LLC; B-Rhineshire Farm LLC
(KY); T-Victoria H. Oliver; J-Luis Saez. $229,400. Lifetime
Record: 6-2-2-0, $392,275. *1/2 to Hidden Stash
(Constitution), MGSP, $291,382. Werk Nick Rating: A+.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Nagirroc, 118, c, 3, Lea–Emma Spencer (Ire), by Zamindar.
O-Little Red Feather Racing, Madaket Stables LLC and William
Strauss; B-Chervenell Thoroughbreds LLC (KY); T-H. Graham
Motion. $74,000.
3–Webslinger, 118, g, 3, Constitution–Arana, by Hard Spun.
1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($45,000 RNA Ylg '21 KEESEP;
$25,000 Ylg '21 FTKOCT; $45,000 RNA 2yo '22 OBSAPR;
$50,000 2yo '22 OBSOPN). O-D. J. Stable LLC; B-Kenneth L. &
Sarah K. Ramsey (KY); T-Mark E. Casse. $37,000.
Margins: 1, 1, 1. Odds: 5.48, 3.63, 4.96.
Also Ran: Mi Hermano Ramon, Andthewinneris, Candidate, Freedom Trail, Dude N Colorado (GB), Wonderful Justice (GB), Movisitor, Rarified Flair. Scratched: Carl Spackler (Ire).
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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Racing at the back of the field and to the inside of favored Verbal (Flintshire {GB}) as they raced under the wire for the first time, Sy Dog found himself detached from the peloton as they cornered to the backstretch, as longshot Credibility (Nyquist) took them along at a sedate tempo. Coinage was happy to take the sit from second and clocked the pacesetter's every move before being allowed to stride into the lead with about 2 1/2 furlongs to travel. Verbal made a run outside of Coinage into the stretch and looked dangerous for a stride or two, but Sy Dog was asked for his best by Irad Ortiz, Jr., looked to exchange bumps on multiple occasions with Coinage into the final eighth of a mile and kicked on gamely, as Grand Sonata boxed on to earn the place spot.

“My horse was traveling perfect the whole race,” the winning jockey commented. “At the three-eighths pole, I thought it was time to pick it up. He did everything I asked for. He was ready. [Trainer] Graham Motion did a great job and I thank the owner [Head of Plains Partners] and the trainer for the opportunity.”

Sy Dog opened his account at first asking with a visually impressive victory going seven furlongs over the Belmont turf course Oct. 24 and peeled out wide in the stretch of the Nov. 27 Central Park S. at Aqueduct before behind shoved over the line a nose to the good.

Pedigree Notes:

Sy Dog is the second graded winner for his New York-based sire, who is also responsible for the Head of Plains-owned and -bred Fluffy Socks, a graded winner at two and three. My Love Venezuela is the dam of the 2-year-old filly Love Amplified (Exaggerator) and a yearling colt by Mshawish. She was most recently covered by Alternation.

Friday, Keeneland
KENTUCKY UTILITIES TRANSYLVANIA S.-GIII, $390,125, Keeneland, 4-8, 3yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:45.38, gd.
1–SY DOG, 118, c, 3, by Slumber (GB)
                1st Dam: My Love Venezuela, by Scat Daddy
                2nd Dam: Gold Point Gal, by Deputy Commander
                3rd Dam: Stylish Star, by Our Native
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. O-Head of Plains Partners LLC; B-Head of Plains Partners & Madaket Stables (KY); T-H. Graham Motion; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr.. $244,900. Lifetime Record: SW, 3-3-0-0, $349,400. Werk Nick Rating: B. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2--Grand Sonata, 118, c, 3, Medaglia d'Oro–A. P. Sonata, by A.P. Indy. ($125,000 RNA Ylg '20 KEESEP). O/B-Whisper Hill Farm,LLC (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher. $79,000.
3–Coinage, 118, c, 3, Tapit–Bar of Gold, by Medaglia d'Oro. ($450,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP). O-D. J. Stable LLC, Chester Broman, Sr. and Mary Broman; B-Chester & Mary R. Broman (NY); T-Mark E. Casse. $29,625.
Margins: 3/4, HF, NK. Odds: 5.70, 2.50, 5.10.
Also Ran: Napoleonic War, Verbal, Credibility.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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Friday, Keeneland Race Course
KENTUCKY UTILITIES TRANSYLVANIA S.-GIII, $150,000, Keeneland, 4-2, 3yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:43.89, gd.
1–SCARLETT SKY, 118, c, 3, by Sky Mesa
                1st Dam: Mata Mua, by Arch
                2nd Dam: Impressionism, by Broad Brush
                3rd Dam: Sky Blue Pink, by Strawberry Road (Aus)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. O/B-Stuart
Janney, III LLC (KY); T-Claude R. McGaughey III; J-Joel
Rosario. $90,000. Lifetime Record: 7-3-3-0, $210,400.
Werk Nick Rating: A+. 
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Palazzi, 120, c, 3, Pioneerof the Nile–Kindle, by Indian
Charlie. ($375,000 Wlg '18 KEENOV; $510,000 Ylg '19 FTSAUG).
O-John C. Oxley; B-HnR Nothhaft Horseracing LLC & Pioneerof
the Nile Syndicate (KY); T-Mark E. Casse. $30,000.
3–Fire At Will, 123, c, 3, Declaration of War–Flirt, by Kitten's
Joy. ($97,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Three Diamonds Farm; B-Troy
Rankin (KY); T-Michael J. Maker. $15,000.
Margins: HF, HF, 1 1/4. Odds: 2.50, 10.70, 1.10.
Also Ran: Barrister Tom, Earls Rock (Ire), Breadman.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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