It wasn't the prettiest victory, but Catch a Glimpse grimly held on to win Friday's GIII Edgewood S. and remain unbeaten in six turf appearances. The GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner was away well from her 10 post and angled towards the hedge to take up a forward position into the first turn. She pressed pacesetting Born to be Winner (Einstein {Brz}) through fractions of :23.34 and :47.59, pulled even with that longshot leaving the backstretch and took charge on the turn. Catch a Glimpse surged clear to a clear advantage in upper stretch, but shortened stride and began swapping leads in the final furlong before holding sway over Auntie Joy. Harmonize, who stumbled at the break, was last at the top of the lane, but closed strongly along the rail to be third.
“I've been fortunate enough to train a couple of really good fillies that were ornery, but today she was very good,” trainer Mark Casse said. “Florent [Geroux] said that she was a different horse from when she was at Keeneland. She's funny because she makes the lead and then pulls herself up. When she does that she pulls herself from her right lead to her left lead and pulls herself up, but when you watch her gallop out they don't go by her. We just have to try to get her to do that.”
Geroux added, “This is a very special, special filly. People were doubtful of her coming into this race because she didn't win her last one very impressively. But, I was always confident in her. She always puts me in a great spot and that's the key to winning races.”
Junior Alvarado aboard Harmonize admitted his start likely cost the filly.
“She came away from there just a little slow, then she stumbled and it took her five or six strides to get going,” Alvarado said. “Then we were behind horses and I had to wait. I tried to save ground as best as I could and she came running. But it was too much at the beginning. It's a shame. I think she's just as good as any of those fillies.”
Catch a Glimpse suffered the only loss of her career while finishing fifth in her off-the-turf debut at Saratoga last July. She graduated in a Woodbine turf allowance Aug. 22 before making her graded stakes debut with a five-length victory in the Sept. 12 GII Natalma S. She concluded her juvenile campaign with a 3/4-length victory in the Breeders' Cup, earning the title of Canada's Horse of the Year. Catch a Glimpse returned at three to win the Feb. 27 GIII Herecomesthebride S. at Guflstream and was just able to hold on to her unbeaten turf record with a fast-diminishing 3/4-length win in the Apr. 14 GIII Appalachian S. at Keeneland.
As to where the filly will start next, Casse said, “Obviously the big goal would be the [July 9 GI] Belmont Oaks, it's a mile and a quarter. I'm sure all the experts will say she can't go that far, and they may be right, but they also may be wrong, so we'll give it a try I think she'll go as long as she has someone to go with her.”
Friday, Churchill Downs
EDGEWOOD S.-GIII, $150,000, CD, 5-6, 3yo, f, 1 1/16mT, 1:42.92, fm.
1–CATCH A GLIMPSE, 123, f, 3, by City Zip
1st Dam: Halo River (GSW, $107,525), by Irish River (Fr)
2nd Dam: All Hallows, by Halo
3rd Dam: Leap Lively, by Nijinsky II
($75,000 Ylg '14 KEESEP). O-Gary Barber, Michael James
Ambler & Windways Farm; B-Branch Equine LLC (KY); T-Mark E. Casse; J-Florent Geroux. $86,490. Lifetime Record: 7-6-0-0,
$929,052. *1/2 to Old Forester (Forestry), GSW, $462,362. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating: A.[bullet ad=”woodstock-bred-arrived-and-thrived”][bullet ad=”kbif-g2g3″][bullet ad=”warrendale-sales-graduate-congrats-to-connections”]2–Auntie Joy, 118, f, 3, Uncle Mo–Rejoicing, by Forestry.
O/B-Sanford R. Robertson (KY); T-Brendan P. Walsh. $27,900.[bullet ad=”blackwood-graduate-2″]3–Harmonize, 123, f, 3, Scat Daddy–Mesa Fresca, by Sky Mesa.
($80,000 Ylg '14 KEESEP). O-Larkin Armstrong; B-Jack Swain (KY); T-William I. Mott. $13,950.[bullet ad=”brookdale-foaled-raised-and-sold”]Margins: 3/4, 3/4, HD. Odds: 1.50, 31.40, 4.80.
Also Ran: Jeremy's Legacy (Ire), Ava's Kitten, Nodiac (Ire), Enjoy Yourself (GB), Adore, Believe in Bertie, Born to Be Winner, Heavenly View, Outsider Art. Scratched: Sky My Sky. 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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