Mystic Guide Half Brother Gershwin Takes Penn Mile
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Photo: B & D Photography
Gershwin wins the Penn Mile Stakes at Penn National Race Course
The ability to handle off tracks appears a family trait of foals out of the A.P. Indy mare Music Note .
Mystic Guide , a 4-year-old out of Music Note by Ghostzapper , splashed his way to victory in the slop in Feb. 27 Razorback Handicap (G3) at Oaklawn Park before his fast-track win in the Dubai World Cup Sponsored By Emirates Airline (G1) March 27. Then on May 28 at Penn National Race Course, his 3-year-old half brother Gershwin delivered on an off-track by winning the $300,000 Penn Mile (G3) by two lengths. Both horses are Godolphin homebreds trained by Mike Stidham.
The start of the 2021 Penn Mile at Penn National Race Course
Originally carded for turf, the Penn Mile and other scheduled grass races at Penn National Friday evening were moved to the main track after steady rain.
Gershwin relished the conditions. He settled behind frontrunners Sibelius and The King Cheek , as they established fractions of :24.66, :49.13, and 1:13.75 in the two-turn mile race, and then powering past with a three-wide move leaving the second turn. Striking the front in midstretch, he won by two lengths over The King Cheek, who finished 6 1/4 lengths in front of Chess's Dream in third.
Favored Annex ran fourth and Sibelius rounded out the five-horse field.
The winner, a 3-year-old son of Distorted Humor , raced a mile in the slop in 1:39.24. He returned $6.80 for a $2 win wager.
Gershwin scored the first stakes victory of his five-race career, improving his earnings to $249,600. Never off the board, he also took a maiden race in the mud this winter at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots and was second over a sloppy track in a first-level allowance at Churchill Downs in his most recent start April 24.
Gershwin is Music Note's second stakes winner following Mystic Guide. The dam also has an unraced 2-year-old filly by Maclean's Music named Gina and foaled a Medaglia d'Oro colt this year.
Video: Penn Mile S. (G3)
A race before the Penn Mile, Orbs Baby Girl led throughout under Junior Alvarado to take the $100,000 Penn Oaks for 3-year-old fillies.
Orbs Baby Girl wins the Penn Oaks at Penn National Race Course
Capitalizing on the race's move to dirt, the only surface on which she had previously won, Orbs Baby Girl quickly took command from her inside post. Racing comfortably in front in the one-mile race with splits of :24.03 and :48.72, she turned back bids on the second turn from Amalfi Princess and Tic Tic Tic Boom , and after three-quarters in 1:13.81, pulled away to win by 5 1/4 lengths. She was timed in 1:39.53 on a sloppy track, paying $8.60.
Amalfi Princess, the 1-5 favorite, chased throughout and ran second, 1 1/2 lengths ahead of Tic Tic Tic Boom in third. The latter threatened with a rally on the final turn before flattening out. Do You Love Me ran last of the depleted field of four.
The winner, trained by Anthony Margotta Jr. for A R M Racing, was a $15,000 purchase by Cool Hill Farm from the Paramount Sales consignment at the 2019 Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale. She is the lone filly to race from five foals out of the winning War Front mare This is War . Three of her foals are age 2 or younger.
Video: Penn Mile S. (G3)