Blueeyesintherein circled around horses on the far turn and powered
clear in the stretch to win Saturday’s 112th running of the Grade III,
$112,200 Debutante at Churchill Downs by 2 ½ lengths over Quiet Success.
Blueeyesintherein
ran six furlongs over a fast track in 1:11.71 to give trainer Garry Simms
his second straight win in the stakes event for 2-year-old fillies. Simms, who
has waged a battle with multiple myeloma since early 2010, began training in
1992 and collected his first Churchill Downs stakes win a year ago with Flashy
Lassie in the Debutante.
“I’ve
been through a lot, but a lot of people have it a lot worse than I do,” Simms
said. “Today’s win is a blessing from above and I’m really happy for my owners
and my team.”
Leandro
Goncalves rode the winner for owners Dorothy Self, Berry King, Travis
Morgenson IV LLC and Burr Travis et al.
Blueeyesintherein,
a 2-year-old daughter of Magna Graduate out of the Mr. Greeley mare Tartufi,
settled behind Dancing Elliebelle, Richie’slilcowgirl and My
Daughter’s Song, who vied for the early lead through fractions of :22.16
and :46.40. Goncalves, looking to get in the clear, moved Blueeyesintherein
four-wide midway through the race, took over the lead at the top of the stretch
and stayed clear under steady urging.
“I
had horses all over me,” Goncalves said. “I had to work my way out. She didn’t
have the best trip, but good horses are always able to overcome things and
that’s what she did.”
Blueeyesintherein
paid $4, $3 and $2.40 as the even-money favorite in the field of 10
two-year-old fillies. Quiet Success, who finished willingly up the rail,
returned $9 and $4.40. Shesakitty was another half-length back in third
after a rough start and paid $3.20. Love Me Good, Floral Sky,
Dancing Elliebelle, Neith, My Daughter’s Song, Truthandknowledge and
Richie’slilcowgirl completed the order of finish.
Bred
in Kentucky by Elisabeth Alexander, Blueeyesintherein received a $66,086
first prize and remained unbeaten in two starts with $100,466. She debuted May
31 at Churchill Downs with a convincing 3 ¾-length score over Shesakitty.
The
Debutante was the first North American graded stakes race of the year for
2-year-old fillies and is one of Churchill Downs’ most storied races. It was
first run in 1895.
Earlier
on the 11-race program, Maggi Moss’ Delaunay won the $67,000
Kelly’s Landing and leading rider Corey Lanerie won four races.
Delaunay,
also ridden by Goncalves, clocked seven furlongs in 1:22.77 and beat Noble’s
Promise by three-quarters of a length. Moss and trainer Tom Amoss
claimed the 5-year-old Smoke Glacken gelding for $40,000 on May 12 and got a
quick return on their investment. The winner’s share was $37,200 and improved his
résumé to eight wins and $274,100 from 32 starts.
The
Kelly’s Landing was the second win of the day for Amoss, who tied Dale
Romans for the lead in the Churchill Downs trainer standings with 16
victories.
Meanwhile,
Lanerie increased his lead over Shaun Bridgmohan in the jockey
standings, 63-40, after wins aboard Gruenewald ($8.40), American
Kitty ($5), Stay Sees Mom ($8.80) and Karlovy Vary ($3.60).
It was the sixth time this season that Lanerie had won at least four races in a
day. He enters the final five days of the 39-day Spring Meet averaging 1.85
wins per day while pursing his first local riding title. Hall of Fame jockey
and local legend Pat Day won 169 races and averaged 1.82 wins per day
during an extended 93-day Spring/Summer meeting in 1983. Day also averaged 1.64
wins per day during the 1991 Spring Meet when he won 90 races over 55
days.
Racing
at Churchill Downs continues Sunday with a 10-race program that begins at 12:45
p.m. ET. A $8,068 Super Hi-5 carryover awaits bettors on the final race of the
day.
DEBUTANTE QUOTES
Garry
Simms, trainer of Blueeyesintherein, winner: “We came into this race with a lot of confidence. I thought we were
the best on paper, but it’s a horse race and anything can happen. She really
showed a lot of class and heart today and looked a lot like her sire, Magna
Graduate, who I trained at the beginning of his career. I had déjà vu watching
her run.”
On winning this race in back-to-back years: “Anytime you can win a big race at a place like
Churchill Downs two years in a row, it’s a big deal. It feels great.”
On getting this win while battling cancer for the last two years: “I’ve been through a lot, but a lot of people have
it a lot worse than I do. Today’s win is a blessing from above and I’m really
happy for my owners and my team.”
Q: What's next?: “We've
got a couple of options. There’s the Schuylerville (GIII at Saratoga on July
20) and the Mountaineer Juvenile Fillies (at Mountaineer on Aug. 4). Either way
she’ll have about four to six weeks before her next start.”
Leandro
Goncalves, jockey on Blueeyesintherein, winner: “She broke well and I decided to lay her off the
pace. Around the half-mile pole, we got in a lot of traffic. From there to the
quarter-pole, I had horses all over me. I had to work my way out. She didn’t
have the best trip, but good horses are always able to overcome things and
that’s what she did.”
Q: Was this extra special to win a race for your good friend, Garry
Simms?: “It’s very, very special.
We all know that two years ago we almost lost him. Garry was the first person
in Kentucky to help me and he’s like a dad to me. He’s been there to help me
and to teach me to do things the right way. It’s a dream to get this win for
him.”
Tom
Amoss, trainer of Quiet Success, second:
“I’m happy for Garry. He’s got a really nice filly and she ran great today. I’m
a fan of his, so that worked out well for everybody.”
Q: You ride Leandro (Goncalves) a lot. Had he been telling you anything
about this winner? “Yeah, he told
me I was running for second, and he was right.”
Q: Any thoughts about the future for Quiet Success? “No. I didn’t know what to expect today, so obviously
we’re pleased. I’ll sit down with the owners and we’ll come up with a game
plan.”
Miguel
Mena, jockey on Quiet Success, second:
“She really ran good. We were able to stay pretty close with her and she really
finished well. We went inside of that filly (Blueeyesintherein) in the stretch,
but I was very happy with the way she finished. The winner looks like a really
good filly, but our filly ran well.”
Lon
Wiggins, trainer of Shesakitty, third:
“She ran really well. We were proud of her. It was a lot to ask of a maiden,
but we were pretty proud of her and thought she deserved a chance. She got a
little late right toward the end of the race, but she went pretty wide around
there. She got banged around at the start pretty good. But that’s horse
racing.”
Q: What about the next step? Will you drop her back into maiden
company? “I would think, at this
point, that we would run her in a maiden race. Maybe we’ll give her a little
extra time and get her feet back underneath her. She was a little ratty in the
(starting) gate today, so we still need to do some work there.
“She’s
a nice filly. She walks in the paddock and just stands there like a pony and
doesn’t get rattled about anything. The gate is really the first thing that’s
ever really got her rattled, and that was today. It was kind of unexpected.”
Calvin
Borel, jockey on Shesakitty, third:
“I thought she ran good. They kind of sandwiched me leaving there, but I was
fine. She gave me that pretty little run. She’ll be all right. She’ll step up
from here on, I think.”
Q: The winner looks like a nice filly … “She’s a very nice filly and you’re going to hear
about her. But I’m very comfortable with my filly. I wouldn’t change nothing.”