Stephanie’s Kitten Defends Flower Bowl Title

Stephanie’s Kitten (Kitten’s oy) became just the second in the history of the race to record back-to-back victories in the GI Flower Bowl Invitational S. (Riskaverse 2004-05) and will head to Keeneland with a free pass to the GI Filly and Mare turf looking to go one better on her runner-up effort behind then-stablemate Dayatthespa (City Zip) at Santa Anita in 2014.

Winner of the GI Alcibiades S. in 2011, the Ramsey homebred annexed the 2013 GI Just a Game S. over yielding Belmont turf and was snapping a five-race winning streak when validating 6-5 favoritism in this event. Beaten 2 1/4 lengths in the Filly/Mare Turf, Stephanie’s Kitten was bought back on a bid of $3.95 million at the 2014 Fasig-Tipton November sale and was sportingly kept in training at six. Winner off the bench of the GIII Hillsborough S. at Tampa Mar. 7, the bay was the given a suspect ride by John Velazquez when fourth as the heavy favorite in the course-and-distance GII New York S. June 5, then found her best stride too late in finishing fifth in the GI Diana S. at Saratoga July 25. Stephanie’s Kitten was most recently involved in the much-discussed and debated GI Beverly D. disqualification Aug. 15 when Secret Gesture (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) came out and bothered her nearing the wire and was checked hard before finishing third. Her stable companion Watsdachances (Ire) (Diamond Green {Fr}) was awarded the victory and Stephanie’s Kitten was moved up to second.

Taking full advantage of her rail draw, Stephanie’s Kitten took up a hedge-clipping spot from third as fellow Brown inmate Danza Cavallo (Fr) (Sunday Break {Jpn}) crossed and cleared from her outside gate. The pace was methodical at best, not unexpected given the ease in the ground, and Irad Ortiz Jr. had the second favorite well within his grasp on the backstretch. Shuffled back when Mutadis Mutandis went for an early run at the half-mile, Stephanie’s Kitten advanced from between horses at the quarter pole and had Danza Cavallo right where she wanted. Curvy (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) loomed a danger three wide, but she could not sustain that run, and Stephanie’s Kitten came away late to successfully defend her title.

“It’s a little similar to last season when in her first couple starts she didn’t run well, and then she rounded into strong form, right into the Breeders’ Cup,” Brown explained. “A combination of her currently training as well as she has all year and catching soft ground the last two starts resulted in her turning the season around. Her last two breezes were as good as I’ve seen her breeze in a year. You look at her – she’s run at the Grade 1 level from age two to six–that’s very rare.”

Saturday, Belmont
FLOWER BOWL S.-GI, $500,000, BEL, 10-3, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/4mT, 2:06.23, sf.
1–STEPHANIE’S KITTEN, 121, m, 6, by Kitten’s Joy
1st Dam: Unfold the Rose, by Catienus
2nd Dam: Bail Out Becky, by Red Ransom
3rd Dam: Becky Be Good, by Naskra
($30,000 RNA Ylg ’10 KEESEP; $17,000 RNA 2yo
’11 OBSAPR; $3,950,000 RNA 5yo ’14 FTKNOV).
O/B-Kenneth L. & Sarah K. Ramsey (KY); T-Chad C.
Brown; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr.. $300,000. Lifetime Record:
24-10-4-4, $3,192,904. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click
for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.[bullet ad=”taylor-made-ftknov-hip-123-stephanieskitten”][bullet ad=”taylor-made-ftnov-hip-141″][bullet ad=”eqb-cardioelitescore”][bullet ad=”kbif-g1″] [bullet ad=”legacy-bloodstock-shell”]
2–Danza Cavallo (Fr), 119, f, 4, Sunday Break (Jpn)–
Tropical Mark (GB), by Mark of Esteem (Ire).
(€16,000 Ylg ’12 AR12). O-M. Dubb, Sheep Pond
Partners, Bethlehem Stables LLC & The Elkstone
Group LLC; B-Sylviane Jeffroy (FR); T-Chad C.
Brown. $100,000.
3–Mutatis Mutandis (Ire), 119, f, 4, Mastercraftsman
(Ire)–Amathia (Ire), by Darshaan (GB). (160,000gns
Ylg ’12 TAOCT). O-Chasemore Farm; B-Kildaragh
Stud (IRE); T-Ed Walker. $50,000.[bullet ad=”blandford-bloodstock-purchased-by-2″][bullet ad=”irt-shell”] Margins: 1HF, 3 1/4, 2. Odds: 2.45, 6.80, 14.50.
Also Ran: Watsdachances (Ire), Curvy (GB), Regardez (GB), Distorted Beauty, America. Scratched: Tiz So Sweet, Rosalind.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.