Midnight Miley Runs Away With Ontario Matron

Longshot Midnight Miley made quick work of eight overmatched opponents in the Ontario Matron (Can-III), as she romped gate-to-wire to a open-lengths win July 17 at Woodbine.

Little Red Feather Racing's Midnight Miley, unchallenged throughout, won by four lengths under jockey Rafael Hernandez and covered 1 1/16 miles on the all-weather track in 1:43.74.

A 4-year-old daughter of Midnight Lute  , Midnight Miley easily cruised to her first graded win after setting a moderate pace of :24.99 and :48.88 for the first half-mile while leading by six lengths.

"I couldn't believe it when I saw them so far in front and in slow fractions," said Carey, who tallied her second graded stakes win, having previously the 2008 Vigil Stakes (Can-III) with Disfuction. "She was doing so well, I would have been shocked if she hadn't run a good race. It looked tough on paper, but it worked out."

Midnight Miley's first stakes win came last year in the listed La Lorgnette Stakes at Woodbine. Trained by Julia Carey, she came into Sunday's race off a third-place finish in the Sweet Briar Too Stakes in her 2016 debut June 4 at the Toronto racetrack. She has a 5-1-1 record from 14 career starts.

Mark Secrest bred Midnight Miley in Kentucky from the winning Talk Is Money mare Moneybru, a half sister to Japanese stakes winner Suni. Hill 'n' Dales Sales Agency sent her through the ring at the 2013 Keeneland September yearling sale, where she sold to Tpm McCrocklin, agent, for $45,000.

Midnight Miley paid $57.10, $21.40, and $7.70. Miss Chatelaine won the race for second place, delivering $6 and $3.90, and Moon Rainbow returned $3.40 to show.

Little Red Feather Racing also enjoyed another graded win later Sunday evening when Midnight Storm, a grade I-winning Pioneerof the Nile   horse owned in partnership with A Venneri Racing, captured the Eddie Read Stakes (gr. IIT) at Del Mar.