La Coronel returned to winning ways with a dominant victory in Keeneland's Appalachian S. Friday afternoon. Breaking sharply, the crowd's second choice kept close tabs on the leaders from a ground-saving third as 77-1 shot Like a Hurricane (Street Boss) ticked off opening splits of :23.89 and :49.13 with Morticia hot on her heels. Punching through between those rivals to seize command in early stretch, the dark bay immediately powered clear under a hand ride from Florent Geroux to win as she pleased. Morticia held on for second while pacesetter Like a Hurricane faded to last. “TDN Rising Star” Proctor's Ledge made a powerful late run to complete the trifecta.
“She broke very sharply today,” Geroux remarked. “She put me in a great spot right away. I just tried to nurse her around there. When [I asked her], she surged like a lion. She just jumped in there and ate them up.”
“She's an amazing horse,” commented winning conditioner Mark Casse, who captured last year's renewal with Canadian Horse of the Year and MGISW Catch a Glimpse (City Zip). “I've gotta thank the Oxleys for so many great things. I have to thank our farm team. This filly had double knee surgery after the [sixth-place finish in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf], and for her to come back and do what she just did … it took a lot of people and a lot of hard work. We're really proud of her.”
The victory earned John C. Oxley, who was also represented by fourth-place finisher Dream Dancing (Tapit), the gold Keeneland tray in recognition of his eighth graded stakes win at the Lexington oval. Click here for more on Oxley.
“If anybody deserves it, he deserves it,” Casse said. “There was a lot of pressure. I was a little nervous about that. I'm glad he got it.”
Favored GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf heroine New Money Honey (Medaglia d'Oro) could do no better than sixth.
“I am disappointed,” trainer Chad Brown said. “She had been training so well. We'll bring her back to Belmont Park and race her there on a course we know she likes. I can't use the layoff as an excuse because she had been training so well and our team is so good at getting them ready. I thought the winner ran a terrific race. [Javier Castellano] just didn't have any horse turning for home.”
Off the board in her first two tries sprinting on the dirt, La Coronel broke through with a decisive four-length tally when switched to the grass and extended to 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland Oct. 12. Five-wide entering the stretch at Santa Anita in the Nov. 4 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, the $375,000 OBSAPR buy checked in sixth and required surgery in both knees afterwards. She kicked off her sophomore season with a neck second in Tampa Bay's GIII Florida Oaks Mar. 11.
Pedigree Notes:
The winner is out of 2006 GIII Whimsical S. winner Listen, whose most recent produce is a yearling colt by Gemologist. La Coronel hails from the family of MGISW turfer Listening (Night Shift); MGSW Listen Here (Gulch); and MGSW & GISP Beautiful Noise (Sunny's Halo), who is the dam of Grade II winner Linda (Scat Daddy).
Thursday, Keeneland
APPALACHIAN S. PRESENTED BY JAPAN RACING ASSOCIATION-GIII, $125,000, KEE, 4-13, 3yo, f, 1mT, 1:37.12, fm.
1–LA CORONEL, 120, f, 3, by Colonel John
1st Dam: Listen (GSP), by Chester House
2nd Dam: Listen Now, by Storm Bird
3rd Dam: Listen Well, by Secretariat
($37,000 RNA Wlg '14 KEENOV; $37,000 Ylg '15 FTKOCT;
$375,000 2yo '16 OBSAPR). O-John C. Oxley; B-Kim & Rodney
Nardelli, Susan Bunning, A. & B. Jaffreys (KY); T-Mark E. Casse;
J-Florent Geroux. $75,000. Lifetime Record: MGSW, 7-3-1-0,
$259,615. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Werk Nick Rating: A.[bullet ad=”kbif-g2g3″][bullet ad=”winstar-eligible-youre-a-winner”][bullet ad=”winners-circle-thoroughbreds-graduate”]2–Morticia, 118, f, 3, Twirling Candy–Halloween Party, by Mr.
Greeley. ($45,000 Ylg '15 FTKOCT). O-G. Watts Humphrey, Jr.;
B-G. Watts Humphrey Jr. & George R. Arnold II (KY); T-George
R. Arnold, II. $25,000.[bullet ad=”lanes-end-sales-grad”]3–Proctor's Ledge, 118, f, 3, Ghostzapper–Archstone, by Arch.
'TDN Rising Star' O/B-Patricia L. Moseley (KY); T-Brendan P.
Walsh. $12,500.[bullet ad=”raised-at-hvf”][bullet ad=”fedamore-brokentrained”]Margins: 3 1/4, HD, HF. Odds: 3.70, 34.70, 7.90.
Also Ran: Dream Dancing, Bellavais, New Money Honey, Lull, Journey Home, Purely a Dream, Coasted, Like a Hurricane. Scratched: Dynatail, Ghostly Presence. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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