It wasn’t what anybody anticipated, but it surely served the aim.
With Alpha Delta Stables’ homebred Raging Sea favored at overwhelming 1-9 odds within the $250,000 Beldame Stakes (G2), it appeared like a paid exercise for a 4-year-old filly coming off a grade 1 win over final 12 months’s champion older dust feminine.
And on the high of the stretch, when the Chad Brown-trained daughter of Curlin drew alongside 22-1 shot Batucada , the result appeared a foregone conclusion.
However no matter what the tote board mentioned, the Beldame turned out to be a thriller as Batucada dug down and battled till the ultimate strides when the heavy favourite was in a position to eke out a head victory within the Oct. 6 stakes for fillies and mares at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Whereas the Beldame could not have been the mismatch it appeared on paper, off Sunday’s win and a earlier victory over Idiomatic within the Private Ensign Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course it earned Raging Sea a visit to Del Mar for the Nov. 2 Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) the place a victory may web her an Eclipse Award.
Raging Sea and jockey Flavien Prat after their victory within the Beldame Stakes
“We wished to select a neater spot slightly than go up towards Idiomatic (in Sunday’s G1 Spinster at Keeneland) and I believe she acquired examined,” mentioned proprietor/breeder Jon Clay. “She acquired a very good exercise for the Breeders’ Cup. So long as she would not get damage between now and November, I believe we’re going. It is going to be very thrilling.”
The victory was the third straight for Raging Sea, all in grade 1 or 2 firm, and sixth within the final seven begins for the daughter of the Storm Cat mare Stormy Welcome who has earned $1,198,478.
“I really like having homebreds carry out properly on the observe,” Clay mentioned. “She was additionally an RNA and I used to be going to promote her. So, I’m glad I’ve her.”
Raging Sea was fifth within the area of six about 5 lengths off the lead via average fractions of :23.98 and :48.31 within the 1 1/8-mile take a look at. Joseph Morgan and Carrie Brogden’s Batucada acquired the primary run on her and grabbed the lead turning for dwelling with Raging Sea sweeping towards her from the surface. The favourite ($2.20) led by a half-length on the eighth pole however Batucada was cussed and the margin grew to become paper-thin till the ultimate strides when Raging Sea and Flavien Prat crossed the wire in 1:50.41.
“I am comfortable to get possibly a delicate bounce out of the best way off (the Private Ensign) and hopefully circle again to that race at Saratoga if you are going to exit West (to the Distaff) and deal with one of the best,” Brown mentioned. “Somebody may learn that and say, ‘Off of that? Why would you go on the market and deal with these?’ However like I mentioned, I view it as I handicapped a little bit of a bounce into this race, and I used to be relieved to form of escape with a victory realizing that she felt her final race. I am assured with the 4 weeks I’ve and her not having to run a quick determine as we speak that she’ll be capable to once more hopefully circle again to that Saratoga race. That race, with the appropriate tempo setup, is nice sufficient to at the very least be aggressive on the market.”
Batucada, a 4-year-old Union Rags filly educated by Saffie Joseph Jr., was coming off a string of three all-weather begins and had not been on dust since Might when she captured an allowance non-obligatory claimer at Gulfstream Park.
It was 4 1/2 lengths again to Klaravich Stables’ Sign From Noise , an Arrogate mare educated by Brown who was third.
