Letruska Exits Apple Blossom Victory in Good Order

Letruska  will remain at Oaklawn Park for the next few days before possibly heading to Churchill Downs, her trainer, Fausto Gutierrez, said April 18, roughly 12 hours after the Mexican champion edged two-time Eclipse Award winner Monomoy Girl  in the $1 million Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) for older fillies and mares.

Gutierrez said Letruksa came out of the 1 1/16-mile race in good order, but next-race plans are pending for the 5-year-old daughter of 2010 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) winner and Arkansas Derby (G1) runner-up Super Saver  . Letruksa was coming off a runner-up finish, beaten a head by Shedaresthedevil , in the Azeri Stakes (G2) March 13 at Oaklawn.

"She ran an incredible race," Gutierrez said. "We lost in the Azeri by a head. Here, we win by a nose. This nose made a big difference."

Gutierrez said he initially considered wheeling back Letruksa in the La Troienne Stakes (G1) April 30 at Churchill Downs, but said it comes back too quick, particularly after a demanding race Saturday. He said shipping to Churchill would still keep Letruska in the Midwest "area."

Speedy Letruksa, after not breaking sharply in the Apple Blossom, was pressed by Monomoy Girl and Eclipse Award winner Swiss Skydiver  throughout. After briefly surrendering the lead to Monomoy Girl in midstretch, Letruksa fought back on the inside to narrowly prevail. It was 6 1/2 lengths farther back to Swiss Skydiver  in third. The winning time over a fast track was 1:43.14. Letruksa carried 118 pounds, 6 fewer than highweight Monomoy Girl, who was beaten for just the third time in 17 lifetime starts.

"I think we're going to take a little bit more time with her," Gutierrez said. "The plan is to go to the Breeders' Cup. We need to check in the middle, which races we can go to."

The Apple Blossom represents the biggest career victory for Gutierrez, 53, who, like the mare's owner/breeder, German Larrea Mota-Velasco (St. George Stable), is from Mexico. Letruksa won her first seven career starts, including six at Hipodromo De Las Americas in Mexico City. The streak was highlighted by blowout scores in two legs of Mexico's Triple Crown for 3-year-old fillies in 2019—the Clasico Esmeralda (G1) and Clasico Diamante (G1)—when Letruksa was named the country's divisional champion.

Gutierrez said Letruksa's Apple Blossom victory was noteworthy because it made her the first horse to begin its racing career in Mexico to capture a grade 1 event in the United States. Letruksa, in her grade 1 debut in the United States, finished fifth in the Ballerina Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course.

Letruksa had previously won the Shuvee Stakes (G3) at Saratoga, Rampart Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park, and the Houston Ladies Classic (G3) Jan. 31 at Sam Houston Race Park.

"She's a great horse, she's amazing," Gutierrez said. "Five years is a perfect age."

Gutierrez is based in South Florida, where he keeps 12 horses at Palm Meadows Training Center. Letruksa, however, remained at Oaklawn following the Azeri, recording two half-mile workouts in advance of the Apple Blossom.

"Of course, this helped, because she adapted better," Gutierrez said. "She's a horse with a lot character. She liked the track. The weather was perfect. Finally, when you have these type of results, everything is perfect."

Letruksa shipped into trainer John Ortiz's barn last April at Oaklawn (an allowance victory during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic) and again for the Azeri. Ortiz and his staff helped care for Letruska following the Azeri, when Gutierrez said he returned twice to Florida.

"Johnny Ortiz, he's a very good friend," Gutierrez said. "He's a person that helped me with everything and we spoke about what was better for the horse. I feel he's part of this win, 100%. He's a young trainer that's had very good results."

Ortiz, among Oaklawn's top 10 trainers with 12 victories through Saturday, galloped Letruksa after she arrived in Arkansas, adding she was a "very nice-moving filly" and "fast."

"We treated her like one of our own," Ortiz said as he clutched the Apple Blossom trophy late Saturday afternoon. "Nice seeing these type of horses in your barn."

The victory improved Letruska's record to 13-1-1 from 18 lifetime starts. She collected $600,000 for her Apple Blossom victory to become a millionaire ($1,157,319). German Larrea Mota-Velasco, a copper mining mogul, bred Letruksa in Kentucky.

Shedaresthedevil, co-owned by Staton Flurry of Hot Springs, is scheduled to make her next start in the La Troienne.