Daddys Lil Darling Victorious in Modesty Handicap
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Photo: Coady Photography
Daddys Lil Darling and Brian Hernandez Jr. win the Modesty Handicap
Cruising to the wire for a smooth, 2 1/4-length win, Daddys Lil Darling was at the top of her game for her Illinois debut, taking home the $100,000 Modesty Handicap (G3T) July 7 at Arlington International Race Course.
It was the first victory in four starts this season for Daddys Lil Darling, who closed her sophomore campaign with her first grade 1 victory in the Dec. 30 American Oaks.
Third last out in the June 8 New York Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G2T) at Belmont Park, Daddys Lil Darling—a 4-year-old daughter of the late Scat Daddy—was sent off a 2-1 favorite in the Modesty, and handicappers were not disappointed.
With Brian Hernandez Jr. in the irons for the first time in her 19-race career, the millionaire stakes winner broke late from her post on the far outside before settling into her stalking spot midpack. Go Baby Run, an 89-1 longshot, sprang to the early lead, setting fractions of :22.71 and :47.06 through four furlongs.
Driving to the front for an early challenge, Sully's Dream engaged Go Baby Run at the half-mile point in a head-to-head duel as Daddys Lil Darling moved up for third. Holding steady to swing three wide through the first two turns, Daddys Lil Darling made her move as they hit the quarter pole, drawing four lengths ahead of the field with a massive kick.
Gliding past the 1/16th-pole, she rode out in the lane to win the 1 3/16-mile test in a final time of 1:53.80. Prado's Sweet Ride rallied in the stretch from the outside to take second, and Hallie Belle, who had run her entire trip on the rail, finished third.
Con Te Partiro finished fourth under jockey Corey Lanerie, his first mount since his wife Shantel died from breast cancer in June.
Out of the Houston mare Miss Hot Salsa, Daddys Lil Darling is a half sister to Twinspires Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) winner Mongolian Saturday. The Normandy Farm homebred improved her record to 5-6-2, with more than $1.3 million in earnings.