Tap Daddy Takes Field Gate to Wire in Murphy
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Photo: Adrianna Lynch
Tap Daddy wins the James W. Murphy Stakes at Pimlico Race Course
Winchell Thoroughbreds' homebred Tap Daddy went wire-to-wire for a commanding 6 1/2-length victory in the $100,000 off-the-turf James W. Murphy Stakes on the Preakness Stakes (G1) undercard May 19 at Pimlico Race Course.
Tap Daddy's victory was a milestone for his deceased sire, Scat Daddy, who now has 100 black-type winners to his credit.
Ridden by Ricardo Santana Jr. for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen, the 3-year-old colt got a good jump out of the gate while pressed by California Night. Racing in the middle of the track, the leaders went the first three-quarters of a mile in 1:11.82 before California Night began to fade. Tap Daddy, however, loved the sloppy going in the 1 1/16-mile Murphy, originally carded for a mile on grass, and continued on through the stretch, with a final time of 1:43.67.
The winner paid $5.80, $3, and $2.40. Threes Over Deuces, who was forwardly placed in third early, closed along the rail in the stretch to secure second, with Takedown third.
"He ran well in the off going," said Asmussen, who teamed with Santana to win the Skipat Stakes with Vertical Oak a day before at Pimlico. "He's just a very nice horse. He's a very versatile horse. Everyone says speed is good in the mud if you handle it. He did, and when he went to the wire, he was taking to it very much."
"We had a lot of confidence in the horse," Santana added. "I knew he was going to run well. My plan was to put him on the lead, let him keep going, and that's what he did."
Tap Daddy has won three of eight starts and improved his earnings to $243,654 with the victory. In his lone previous effort on an off track, Tap Daddy finished third but was elevated to second as a result of disqualification in the Dixiana Bourbon Stakes (G3) at Keeneland. In January, the colt produced from the winning Tapit mare Easy Tap finished third in the Smarty Jones Stakes at Oaklawn Park.
Video: James W. Murphy S. (BT)
In another off-the-turf listed stake on the undercard, even-money favorite Girls Know Best took the lead coming out of the turn and strode off to win Pimlico's The Very One Stakes under Javier Castellano by 1 3/4 lengths.
Racing over the sloppy (sealed) main track for the first time in her career, Girls Know Best pushed longshot leader Victorias Fire through a half-mile in :44.52 before taking charge and never looking back, stopping the timer in a quick :57 for five furlongs. Pretty Perfection and Anna's Bandit both rallied late for second and third, respectively.
Girls Know Best paid $4.00, $3.00, and $2.60.
A 4-year-old daughter of Caleb's Posse out of the Maria's Mon mare Now U Know, Girls Know Best was claimed by owners Brian Chenvert and trainer Eddie Kenneally for $40,000 from breeders Don Von Hemel and Todd Dunn during a winning effort at Keeneland in October.
Girls Know Best, who previously won the Ladies' Turf Sprint and Abundantia Stakes, both over the Gulfstream Park turf course in January, has a record of 9-1-1 from 15 career starts. The filly has earned $320,024.
Kenneally, who was not at Pimlico, said via phone from Kentucky that he considered scratching Girls Know Best, even though she has six main track wins.
"I didn't know if I should run her or not, but we decided to go ahead, and it worked out," the conditioner said. "She had won five races before we claimed her. She knew how to win. A 3-year-old (last year) having won five races means a lot. She looked like she was a pretty sound filly, so we went ahead and claimed her. She's matured and grew up, and I think she's just sort of got lucky, really. We'll see what comes up for her. I think she will go back to the grass."
"She's very straightforward," Castellano said. "She's got the speed and she's got the dimension. I like her because she doesn't have to be in the lead. That other horse she targeted (she) let dictate the race. She just sat off her and relaxed. She finished really strong."