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FILLY & MARE TURF DIARY JULY 28, 2008 by Kellie Reilly Recent developments have underscored the strength of the June 7 Just a Game S. (G1), eminently justifying its elevation to Grade 1 status this season. Graduating from that Belmont fixture were the smashing winner of the Diana S. (G1) at Saratoga, and the should-have-been-the-winner of the CashCall Mile Invitational S. (G2) at Hollywood Park. Also in this issue, we'll review a few impressive performances from the three-year-olds. Star performer: FOREVER TOGETHER (Belong to Me), who had been a closing third to VENTURA (Chester House) in the one-mile Just a Game, humbled a strong field going nine furlongs in this past Saturday's Diana. Tenth and last through the opening half-mile, the Jonathan Sheppard trainee took flight in the stretch and overwhelmed DYNAFORCE (Dynaformer) by a thoroughly convincing three-quarters of a length. By blazing her final eighth in roughly :11, Forever Together just plain outkicked her more accomplished rivals -- RUTHERIENNE (Pulpit), who trudged in third, 3 1/2 lengths behind Dynaforce; fourth-placer VACARE (Lear Fan); and champion WAIT A WHILE (Maria's Mon), who wound up seventh in her first start since January. Unlike the Just a Game, which was a messy race with a cluster of hard-luck stories, the Diana was a straightforward, cleanly run affair. The ground, which had absorbed plenty of rain earlier in the week, was upgraded to good on Saturday. Indeed, the very fact that the firm-turf-loving Wait a While did not scratch was a strong hint that the course was in good shape, and not on the soft side. So, barring some physical problem coming to light as an excuse for any of her victims, Forever Together simply demolished them, fair and square, with a sparkling turn of foot, in a final time of 1:46 2/5. The winner of the Forward Gal S. (G2) on the dirt last year, the gray has made giant strides since Sheppard switched her to the turf in May. Forever Together landed her grass debut in the Reluctant Guest S. at Arlington prior to her encouraging third in the Just a Game. She has now proven her class, but the distance question must still be resolved before she can fulfill her Breeders' Cup aspirations. According to Sheppard, Forever Together could tackle 1 1/4 miles for the first time in the September 27 Flower Bowl Invitational (G1) at Belmont. Given her total switching-off early in the Diana, the stiffening presence of her broodmare sire Relaunch, and her deep female line, the probabilities are in her favor. Finding a way to lose: Forever Together's Diana coup might have been taken as a compliment to Ventura, her conqueror in the Just a Game. But since Ventura went on to fritter away certain victory in the July 5 CashCall Mile, she's too frustratingly self-willed to be relied upon. Early in the CashCall, Ventura was throwing her head around and generally giving Garrett Gomez a tough time. No harm, I thought, since she had done the same thing in the Just a Game. In the stretch, when Gomez urged her on, Ventura did not merely go forward -- she seemed to lurch at first while shifting her weight. After briefly organizing herself in this way, she stormed past DIAMOND DIVA (GB) (Dansili [GB]) and looked set for a smart score. Then, in the waning yards, she abruptly tapped the brakes, stopped reaching out for the wire, and gave a fine impression of being distracted. I don't blame Gomez for this predicament, for he has been her regular rider thus far, he knows her quirks, he was trying to coax her, and giving her another crack of the whip may well have been counterproductive. To her everlasting credit, Diamond Diva had never given up after being passed, but kept plugging away on the inside. As Ventura lost her concentration, Diamond Diva's workmanlike persistence paid off, and she got up in time to snatch the victory by a nose. Nor was this merely a matter of winning on the head-bob, for she was edging away from Ventura past the wire as well. Diamond Diva was getting four pounds from the runner-up, but the real differential was one of attitude. Diamond Diva's never-say-die mindset reminded me of something that tennis legend John McEnroe has often said -- "If you stick your racket out, good things can happen." No matter how good your opponent's shot, no matter how poor your position, you have to do your best to keep the point going and make your opponent finish the job. In tennis terms, Ventura blew Diamond Diva off the court for a moment, but Diamond Diva stuck her racket out, got the ball back in play, and Ventura casually dumped it in the net. It would be fascinating to see a rematch between these two, but Ventura is not nominated to the August 3 John C. Mabee H. (G1) at Del Mar, presumably Diamond Diva's next port of call. Defending CashCall champion LADY OF VENICE (Fr) (Loup Solitaire) checked in third, 2 1/4 lengths adrift of the theater up front. She may want to go longer than a flat mile at this stage of her career. Prepping for Arlington? Two recent stakes have tended to serve as stepping stones to the Beverly D. S. (G1) in the past, but this year, neither may have an impact on the August 9 festivities at Arlington. The July 12 Modesty H. (G3), held at the same course and 1 3/16-mile distance as the Beverly D., produced a solid display from COMMUNIQUE (Smart Strike), who rallied well on the soft ground and ran out a strong 3 3/4-length winner. Trainer Rusty Arnold remains hesitant about committing the improving four-year-old to the Beverly D., with the Glens Falls H. (G3) on Labor Day at Saratoga an alternative spot. Although I can well understand the class concerns, considering that the streaking MAURALAKANA (Fr) (Muhtathir [GB]) and champion DREAMING OF ANNA (Rahy) will be lying in wait in the Beverly D., Communique is already a multiple Grade 3 winner. Another Grade 3 title, even at the lofty Spa, would not enhance her broodmare value as much as a Grade 1 placing. With her affinity for Arlington already established, why not strike while the iron is hot, so to speak? On July 12 at Delaware Park, the Robert G. Dick Memorial H. (G3) witnessed a shocking upset. The defending champion and 1-5 favorite, ROSINKA (Ire) (Soviet Star), attempted to repeat her front-running tactics that worked in 2007. But this time, no pedestrian fractions were allowed. Rosinka ratcheted up the early pace when pressed, tried to shoot clear turning for home, but then cocked her head, raced a little erratically, tired through the stretch and finished third. As she wilted, the 20-1 PALMILLA (Crowd Pleaser) asserted herself to claim the spoils in this newly promoted Grade 3 event. Rosinka is far, far better than this, and her defeat probably has a lot to do with the fact that she went too fast through a couple of those early quarter-miles. Neither Palmilla nor Rosinka is under consideration for the Beverly D. at this time. On the upswing: GENUINE DEVOTION (Ire) (Rock of Gibraltar [Ire]) extended her winning streak to four when posting a wire-to-wire victory in the July 6 Locust Grove H. (G3) at Churchill Downs. Although the Kiaran McLaughlin filly got away with steady fractions, she did not get a free pass on the front end, but was hounded every step of the way. Genuine Devotion spurted away from the field in the stretch, but the utterly dependable BROWNIE POINTS (Forest Wildcat) gave her a scare when she unleashed her trademark late run. The wire came in time for Genuine Devotion, who was receiving five pounds from the runner-up. Considering that this one-mile test was her first attempt at two turns, Genuine Devotion acquitted herself well, but it's doubtful that she would be asked to go much farther. Furthermore, she's got a way to go to match the massive star potential of her juvenile half-brother, the undefeated Mastercraftsman (Danehill Dancer), who routed his rivals in Sunday's Phoenix S. (Ire-G1) for Aidan O'Brien. Top sophomore: PURE CLAN (Pure Prize) is the pro tem leader of the three-year-old filly brigade after taking the July 5 American Oaks Invitational (G1) in admirable style at Hollywood Park. Settled well off the early pace by Julien Leparoux, the Bob Holthus trainee gradually put herself into the race down the backstretch. Pure Clan steadily advanced along the rail, improving her position on her own initiative, but not pulling or dragging. Midway on the far turn, she was just behind the leaders, matching strides with French shipper SATAN'S CIRCUS (Gone West) to her outside, and Leparoux began asking Pure Clan for more run. Up until this point, her rail-skimming trip had been an advantage, but as the turn led into the stretch, it suddenly turned into a detriment. In front of Pure Clan were the tiring leaders, who were blocking her path and stalling her momentum. There was no escape route to her outside, for Satan's Circus was in the process of sweeping by and taking the lead. After being stuck in a holding pattern, Pure Clan finally found a sliver of room between the two weakening pacesetters, and she did not hesitate to charge right through it and overpower Satan's Circus. The farther Pure Clan went, the stronger she looked, pulling away by three-quarters of a length at the wire to extend her turf record to four-for-four. Thus for the third straight year, the American Oaks went to a filly with strong form on the dirt. Although her margin of victory was identical to that of last year's heroine, Panty Raid, Pure Clan's manner of victory was much more authoritative. And although she did not pulverize her rivals the way Wait a While did in 2006, Pure Clan promises to follow her lead and become a long-term presence in this division. Holthus plans to keep her among her own age group for now, with the August 16 Del Mar Oaks (G1) her next likely engagement, and the October 11 Queen Elizabeth II Invitational Challenge Cup (G1) at Keeneland another objective down the road. Waiting in the wings: Another with the QEII on her agenda is MY PRINCESS JESS (Stormy Atlantic), who has developed a killer instinct of late. Purchased by Lael Stables (of Barbaro fame) and transferred to Barclay Tagg after her victory in the May 8 Gaviola S. at Belmont, the dark bay has won both of her starts for her new connections, each in contrasting ways. In the June 28 Boiling Springs S. (G3) at Monmouth, My Princess Jess made an impressive move on the far turn while still in hand, opened up by 3 1/2 lengths in midstretch, and held off the deep-closing MUCH OBLIGED (Kingmambo) by a neck at the wire. The final time was a smashing 1:39 4/5 for 1 1/16 miles. My Princess Jess followed up in dramatically different fashion in this past Friday's Lake George S. (G2) at Saratoga, leading me to dub her "Joltin' Jess." Smothered on the inside, she was denied the opportunity to blow the race apart entering the stretch this time. Instead, she was closeted behind ALWAJEEHA (Dixieland Band) and the pacesetter STEALIN' KISSES (Sky Mesa) until midstretch, when a seam opened up. Like Pure Clan in the American Oaks, My Princess Jess roared through en route to a convincing score. Unlike Pure Clan, however, she slammed the filly to her inside, Stealin' Kisses, before disposing of Alwajeeha by three-quarters of a length. Joltin' Jess left no doubt of her supremacy as she finished her final sixteenth in a shade less than :6 on the soft inner turf. But while she was incontestably the moral winner, she was not certain to be declared the official winner until the stewards conducted an inquiry into the mugging of Stealin' Kisses, who never recovered from the body blow and reported home fifth. I was a little surprised that there was no change, primarily because it could be argued that Stealin' Kisses lost a placing -- she was definitely beaten by the top two when the interference occurred, but she was still sticking on gamely on the rail, and it's no open-and-shut case that she was bound to be fifth anyway. What is certain is that she lost any possibility of a better placing once she bounced off the rail, clipped heels, bobbled and checked. In any event, I've seen horses disqualified, wrongly, for much less than this -- why were they not given the same latitude accorded to Joltin' Jess? Suffice it to say that consistency in these sorts of rulings would be nice. Finally, on a less controversial note, we must credit I LOST MY CHOO (Western Expression) with a barnstorming late run in the July 19 Virginia Oaks (G3) at Colonial Downs. Under a perfectly judged ride by Edgar Prado, the Phil Serpe trainee inhaled the one-time runaway leader in deep stretch and cruised to a 1 1/2-length score. I Lost My Choo still has something to prove against the likes of Pure Clan and My Princess Jess, but she's on an upward curve at present. On the horizon: Our next issue will preview the likely field for the Beverly D.
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