Room for Me Wins Garland of Roses

Room for Me came off a seventh in the Oct. 31 TwinSpires Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (gr. I) at Keeneland to return to winning form Dec. 5 when she aired by 3 3/4 lengths in the $100,000 Garland of Roses Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack.

"She banged her head on the gate in the Breeders' Cup," said owner/trainer David Jacobson. "Victor (Espinoza) said that took her out of the race, but she still ran a really good race, getting beat five lengths after coming from dead last."

Jubilant Vision showed the way through a :22.52 first quarter with a three-length lead, but would lose her advantage to the eventual winner through a :45.70 half, as Room for Me swept around her outside and drew away through five-eighths in :57.46. Grade I winner Princess Violet was closing from last but did not make up enough ground on her rival, the 4-5 favorite in a field of six who finished in a snappy 1:09.87 on a fast track.

"We had a good trip," Ortiz said. "I broke out of there and (raced) third or fourth on the inside saving ground. By the three-eighths pole, I saw the horse in front of me getting out a little bit, so I took a chance and put myself in there. She got through and after that she took off, she did everything. That's the first time I've ridden her, she's a nice filly."

Room for Me returned $3.90, $2.40, and $2.10 while Princess Violet brought $2.80 and $2.20 as the 2-1 second choice. Completing the order of finish were La Madrina ($2.70), Jubliant Vision, Classic Point, and Nuffsaid Nuffsaid. Medaglia d'Argento scratched to run in the Willa On the Move Stakes at Laurel Park, where she finished off the board.

Room for Me was picked up for $12,500 out of a Feb. 12 claiming race at Santa Anita Park (she romped by 10 lengths in the one-mile event). She has raced 10 times in the 10 months since then, including a victory in the Regret Stakes at Monmouth Park in August and her first win off the claim for Jacobson, an impressive 13 1/2-length triumph in the $50,000 Videogenic Stakes over six furlongs back in March.

"You always hope they'll turn out to be this good when you claim them, but this has been a pleasant surprise," Jacobson said. "She had good form, was running decent looking races, so it was a nice horse to claim at the time. The intention was to bring her back for the Claiming Championship here in March.

"She'll let me know where to go next. It's one race at a time. I don't plan out a long term campaign with fillies and mares as much as with geldings, but we'll see how she is and look to run back in New York."

Room for Me was bred in Kentucky by Stonebriar Stables out of the Honour and Glory mare Graziella, and sold for $1,200 to Beech Spring as a weanling consinged by Hill 'n' Dale at the 2010 Keeneland November mixed breeding stock sale. She won both sprinting and covering a route of ground on dirt and Polytrack on the Southern California circuit for trainers A.C. Avila and Simon Callaghan before heading east.

The Garland of Roses win improved Room for Me's record to 9-2-1 from 21 starts for earnings of $423,400.