Personal Best Takes La Prevoyante in Career Highlight

Under a powerful ride from Irad Ortiz Jr. in the stretch, Personal Best  nabbed the $150,000 La Prevoyante Stakes (G3T) Jan. 28 at Gulfstream Park in the top performance of her career for owner/breeder Joseph Allen. 

The 4-year-old Tapit   gray filly traveled perfectly throughout the 1 1/2 mile event over firm turf, sitting in midpack through opening splits of :23.48 and :48.19, with Adventuring  firmly in the lead and Beside Herself  trying to keep up with the swift pace in second. Down the backstretch and on the final turn, Adventuring maintained her frontrunning position in 1:13.57 and 1:38.71 as Transient  moved up from the outside to bid for the lead as the seven-horse field turned for home after 1 1/4 miles in 2:02.71.

Adventuring continued to hold the lead with strong encouragement from Joel Rosario but the 5-year-old mare did not have enough left in the tank as Tyler Gaffalione and Transient passed while Personal Best blazed into contention from the outside. At the wire, it was the Shug McGaughey-trained Personal Best by a neck, timed in 2:26.04.

Transient took second while Adventuring lasted for third. 

"She was tracking really good there. She's got a tendency to hang. I think that's why Irad waited the way he did, so he could pounce when he pounced," McGaughey told FanDuel TV's Caton Bredar. "Sometimes she'll get up there and she won't go. I think (Irad's) ridden her twice now, and he's ridden perfect both times."

Favored Personal Best ($4.60) improved her record to 3-2-3 from nine starts and increased her earnings to $294,860.

The winner was bred in Kentucky out of Allen's grade 1-winning War Front   mare War Flag , who took the 2017 Flower Bowl Stakes (G1T) as well as the 2016 Prix Chloe (G3) during a prior French campaign. Personal Best is the dam's first foal from three others. Her only other foal to race, 3-year-old Capture the Flag , won on debut at Saratoga Race Course in July 2022 in her lone start.

The La Prevoyante was the first of seven graded stakes on Pegasus World Cup Day.