Brown: 'Eli' Among All-Time Great Turf Mares
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Photo: Chad B. Harmon
Lady Eli after winning the Flower Bowl Oct. 8 at Belmont Park
Lady Eli emerged in good order from her Oct. 9 victory in Belmont Park's Flower Bowl (gr. IT), the second start of her comeback from a long absence, in which she clinched a spot in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf (gr. IT).
Trainer Chad Brown, who won his fourth Flower Bowl in six years, heads to the Breeders' Cup Nov. 5 at Santa Anita Park with Sheep Pond Partners' 4-year-old daughter of Divine Park who won for the first time since her year-long layoff as she recovered from laminitis.
NOVAK: Lady Eli Ruthless in Flower Bowl
"It takes such a rare horse to overcome what she has and to make it all the way back to the Breeders' Cup. I think she's one of the all-time great turf mares," Brown said Lady Eli, who won the 2014 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (gr. IT) amid a six-race win streak before she developed laminitis.
Lady Eli finished second in her return in the Ballston Spa (gr. IIT) Aug. 27 and rebounded Saturday with a three-quarter-length win.
"Lady Eli was impressive. It was a wide trip and she was able to overcome it all," said Brown, who won four graded stakes Saturday. "I was really happy to see her win again."
Sea Calisi, who made her first start since winning the Beverly D. (gr. IT) Aug.13 at Arlington, is also expected to join her stablemate at the Breeders' Cup after coming in third in the Flower Bowl. Owned by Martin Schwartz, Sea Calisi has finished off the board just once in 11 starts.
"She ran good. She might have had a little too much spacing between races," Brown said. "I think she'll get a lot out of this race moving forward to the Breeders' Cup."