Dahlia

Grand Farm's FESTIVAL (Jpn) (Assatis) rolled past pacesetter Irgunette (Aus)

(Irgun) in midstretch en route to a six-length romp in Monday's $150,000 Dahlia

H. (G3), the closing-day feature at Hollywood Park. The Paddy Gallagher-trained

five-year-old mare, who earned her first graded/group win in her second U.S.

start since being imported from Japan, was ridden by Danny Sorenson and sent off

as the 5-1 fifth choice in the five-horse field. Originally scheduled for the

turf, the 1 1/16-mile event was switched to the main track and lost half of its

entrants as well as its Grade 2 status, pending a review from the American

Graded Stakes Committee.

Festival was content to trail the entire field in the early stages while

Irgunette led the way by a large margin through fractions of :23 1/5 and :45

3/5. Festival still trailed in second by seven lengths after six furlongs in

1:09 3/5, but she began to erase the margin substantially leaving the far turn

and continued her momentum into the stretch drive, inhaling Irgunette inside the

eighth pole and quickly drawing clear. She stopped the teletimer over the fast

track in 1:42.

The bay winner paid $13.40, $5.80 and $5.40 and keyed the $25.70 exacta ($1)

with Irgunette, who gave back $5.60 and $4.40. It was another nine lengths back

to Belle Ange (Fr) (Ganges), who was followed under the wire by 6-5 favorite

Midwife (Family Calling) and Navaja (NZ) (Daggers Dawn). Show returned $4, the

$1 trifecta $73.60 and the 7-3-5-9 superfecta $181.70. Belleski (Polish

Numbers), Janeian (NZ) (The Jogger), Katdogawn (GB) (Bahhare), Penny's Fortune

(Storm Cat) and Hoh Buzzard (Ire) (Alhaarth) were all scratched.

Festival recorded her first win since her juvenile campaign in 2001 when she

was a two-time stakes heroine. She hadn't even hit the board since that season,

but now appears to have turned things around in America. The Japanese-bred, who

is out of the unraced mare North Cape (Crowned Prince), has now earned $607,550 from

a 20-5-0-0 line.