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Song looks Magnificent in Lake George In Friday's $112,900 Lake George S. (G3), L & D Farms' MAGNIFICENT SONG (Unbridled's Song) uncorked a withering stretch run to overhaul her pacesetting stablemate Somethinaboutbetty (Forestry). In the process, the top two finishers in the 1 1/16-mile turf event continued trainer Todd Pletcher's domination of graded stakes in the opening days at Saratoga. Somethinaboutbetty led the field through slow fractions of :24 1/5, :49 3/5 and 1:14 2/5 as Quite a Bride (Stormy Atlantic) tracked in second at a respectful distance. Meanwhile, Magnificent Song and rider Garrett Gomez were content to canter in the rear of the field in the early going, taking closer order on the far turn to maneuver into fourth, momentarily waiting for room. While Somethinaboutbetty kicked for home, getting the mile in 1:39 2/5, and Quite a Bride kept on at the same pace, Magnificent Song found clear passage on the outside and quickly devoured the ground with her long, raking strides. In deep stretch, the gray glided past the longtime leader to win going away by three-quarters of a length in a final time of 1:45 4/5 on the yielding inner turf. "I had a great trip," Gomez said. "I slid up the fence and actually hit my heels on the hedge a few times. In the past, she was real timid, but Todd has done a great job in getting her to relax. I thought the give in the ground would move her up a bit, and it definitely did." "It seemed to make a difference putting blinkers on Magnificent Song (three starts back)," Pletcher said. "It was Johnny (Velazquez's) recommendation that we do it back at Gulfstream. Maybe he was wishing he didn't say that at the sixteenth pole (as he was aboard Somethinaboutbetty). "We just let Magnificent Song settle," the horseman continued. "We didn't think she would be that far back, but she came with that big run late." Quite a Bride stuck to her task to finish a clear third, 2 1/4 lengths ahead of Diamond Spirit (Holy Bull), who nosed out Christmas Stocking (Ops Smile) for fourth. The 2-1 favorite Pyramid Love (Fusaichi Pegasus) checked in another 1 3/4 lengths back in sixth, followed by Southern Protocol (Dixieland Band) and Moya (Lear Fan). Dispatched as the third choice at 3-1, Magnificent Song returned $8.20, $4.10 and $2.90 while leading exotics worth $41.80 (exacta) and $95 (7-3-6 trifecta). The 5-1 Somethinaboutbetty gave back $5.10 and $3.50, and Quite a Bride yielded $3.40 as the 3-1 second choice. Magnificent Song was posting her second career stakes victory and her first at the graded level, advancing her record to 8-4-1-1 with a bankroll of $244,924. After capturing the Edgewood S. at Churchill Downs on Kentucky Oaks (G1) day, she was literally beaten into submission when second in the June 17 Regret S. (G3) to the outstanding Lady of Venice (Fr) (Loup Solitaire), who bumped Magnificent Song as she barged her way through in upper stretch. Pletcher's gray filly was likely not too disappointed that Lady of Venice opted to take on elders in Saturday's Diana H. (G1) rather than lining up in the Lake George. Bred by ClassicStar in Kentucky, the winner was acquired by her current connections for $625,000 as a yearling at the 2004 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale. Magnificent Song is out of the Storm Cat mare Song to Remember, who is herself a half-sister to multiple Grade 3 victor Lech (Danzig), Grade 3 heroine Savina (Nijinsky II) and stakes winner and Grade 2-placed Crimson Guard (Danzig). Song to Remember has also produced a yearling colt by Mr. Greeley and two full sisters to the winner, an unraced juvenile named Unbridled Duet and a 2006 filly. Pletcher left future options open for Magnificent Song. "The Lake Placid (S. [G2] on August 18) may be a little too quick to bring her back. We'll have to see."
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