Quick Start Leads Mean Mary to New York Stakes Victory
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Janet Garaguso
Mean Mary holds off Thundering Nights in the New York Stakes at Belmont Park
Over 1 1/4 miles on a rain-soaked, yielding turf course at Belmont Park, the $750,000 New York Stakes (G2T) took 2:04.68 to complete, but Mean Mary essentially won the race in the first second.
Breaking like a Quarter Horse under Luis Saez, she quickly opened up a clear advantage and once in front settled kindly, as is her custom, to lead from start to finish over an onrushing Irish invader in Thundering Nights under John Velazquez. The finish was tight, with Mean Mary lasting by a nose.
"She came out of the gate like a rabbit. I'd never seen her break like that," said winning trainer Graham Motion. "She really does love it. She's such a cool filly."
It was not the blowout Mean Mary delivered in capturing the New York Stakes under Saez in 2020. Still, the victory was no less satisfying to Motion and owner/breeder Alex Campbell Jr. Both were at Belmont Park for the winner's circle presentation.
Mean Mary, a daughter of the late Scat Daddy , paid $7.40 to win as the slight favorite in the field of nine. She set fractions of :25.09, :50.31, 1:15.83, and 1:40.22 while maintaining leads of between 1 1/2 to two lengths at those points of call.
Jockeys remarked that the turf course was soft after a heavy, late-afternoon downpour that delayed racing for about 45 minutes. The wet conditions appeared to compromise some runners, who lacked their usual punch, including last-out graded stakes winners Harvey's Lil Goil and Magic Attitude . They ran fifth and seventh, respectively.
The latter was eligible to the "New York Stakes Turf Bonus," offering a prize of $315,000 to owner Lael Stable had she won. This was from capturing last year's Belmont Oaks (G1T), one of three races from which a potential bonus horse could qualify.
Mean Mary had no issue with the wet going, Saez said.
"She tried pretty hard the whole time," Saez said. "Johnny (on Thundering Nights) came flying there, but she gave me that last kick. She's a hard fighter."
Velazquez added, "I was stuck behind the two horses in front of me, and it took me a long time to get her going. Once she got loose, she came running but it was too late."
My Sister Nat closed from last to be third, two lengths behind the runner-up. Virginia Joy was fourth.
Bred in Kentucky, Mean Mary is out of the Dynaformer mare Karlovy Vary , winner of the 2012 Central Bank Ashland Stakes (G1). She died in 2017.
Karlovy Vary has produced three winners from as many foals, including fellow graded stakes winner Bye Bye Melvin , who took the Saranac Stakes (G3T) at Saratoga Race Course last year for Mean Mary's owner and trainer.
Motion mentioned the Aug. 14 Beverly D. Stakes (G1T) at Arlington International Racecourse as a potential summer target for Mean Mary. The speedy 5-year-old mare has won seven of 11 starts and now over $1 million in earnings.