Come Dancing Waltzes Home in Ballerina
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Photo: Anne M. Eberhardt
Come Dancing wins the Ballerina Stakes at Saratoga Race Course
A slow start did nothing to hamper Come Dancing's quick finish in the $480,000 Ketel One Ballerina Stakes (G1) Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course.
The 5-year-old daughter of Malibu Moon broke a step behind and chased four rivals early as Separationofpowers and Mia Mischief dueled for the advantage in the seven-furlong sprint. But jockey Javier Castellano immediately got 3-5 choice Come Dancing back into the game, and the dark bay mare galloped up to third as the half went in :45.86 after a :23.31 quarter.
"When I saw her just sit out there in third, I said, 'She's so comfortable,'" said trainer Carlos Martin. "When she gets into that comfortable rhythm, it means she has a lot left coming back."
When the frontrunners began to tire, Come Dancing easily took control at the head of the lane and increased her advantage to the wire. Dawn the Destroyer was second, and Special Relativity finished third behind a final time of 1:21.48. Separationofpowers was fourth and Mia Mischief finished fifth. Pacific Gale and Minit to Stardom were scratched.
Come Dancing returned $3.50, $2.80, and $2.30.
"On paper, she looked like the horse to be on the lead, but in my heart I felt she didn't have to be on the lead today," Castellano said. "She didn't break sharp out of the gate. I took my time to move up and control the race. She's a wonderful filly and she's so kind. You can do whatever you want with her. In the stretch, she proved she was much the best."
The Ballerina is a Breeders' Cup Challenge "Win and You're In" event, and the victory awarded the Blue Devil Racing Stable homebred an automatic berth in the field for the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1). The win marked the first grade 1 for Martin, 50, since he became the youngest trainer to win at the top level in New York, when Buy the Firm captured the 1991 Top Flight Handicap (G1).
Come Dancing began her season with a 7 3/4-length romp in the April 5 Distaff Handicap (G3) at Aqueduct Racetrack, followed by a 6 3/4-length win in the May 5 Ruffian Stakes (G2) at Belmont Park. She came off a runner-up finish to the venerable Midnight Bisou in the 1 1/16-mile Ogden Phipps Stakes (G1) June 8 at Belmont Park, and in dialing back to sprinting improved her record to seven wins and two seconds from 12 starts, for earnings of $881,700.
"I think she's shown that, when given time between races, she fires her best shot," Martin said.
Come Dancing was bred in Kentucky out of the grade 2-winning Virginia-bred Tiznow mare Tizahit and is her dam's third foal. She is the most accomplished runner from Tizahit's four starters, two of them winners (the other is the Ghostzapper gelding Double Deep). The mare is also the dam of a 3-year-old Speightstown colt named Hit the Town Runin who is in training with Jimmy Jerkens for Late Night Stables. Her last reported foal was a full brother to Come Dancing produced in 2018. She was bred to Bolt d'Oro for 2020.