Farrell Back in Fighting Form with Shuvee Win
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Photo: Skip Dickstein
Farrell (inside) wins the Shuvee Stakes at Saratoga Race Course
With a refuse-to-lose attitude Coffeepot Stables' Farrell made her Saratoga Race Course debut one to remember July 29, when she captured the $200,000 Shuvee Stakes (G3) by a neck.
For the first time since January, the 4-year-old Farrell found herself back in the winner's circle. After back-to-back second-place runs in the La Troienne Stakes presented by Twinspires.com (G1) and the Fleur de Lis Handicap (G2), the daughter of Malibu Moon stepped down one more notch to the Shuvee and finally took home a win.
After the race was delayed for more than 15 minutes by the late scratch of Frost Wise, Farrell quickly established a two-length lead and set fractions of :24.35, :48.31, and 1:11.83 through six furlongs. Still in charge at the quarter pole, jockey Channing Hill finally asked the filly for speed when she began to drift in upper stretch.
Tracking the pace on the outside, Wow Cat came under a drive to close the gap, but Farrell held on for the win.
"She's such a good mare. She deserves to win a race like this up here," Hill said. "I can't say too much bad about her. She can be a little particular, as you can see. Halfway down the lane, I thought we should have opened up by open lengths by the eighth pole, but that's just her."
The final time for the 1 1/8-mile dirt test was 1:49.35. Wow Cat, Verve's Tale, Ivy Bell, Pacific Wind, and Tiger Moth rounded out the order of finish.
"We had concerns initially, but when I saw the forecast, I wasn't as concerned," said trainer Wayne Catalano. "This track is favored for speed, so when they scratched (Frost Wise), I looked pretty comfortable there."
Pleased with Sunday's win and keen to see his filly finally attain grade 1 glory, Catalano said a possible target could be the Aug. 25 Ketel One Ballerina Stakes (G1).
"The filly did a great job," he said. "We were very happy with everything, obviously."
Bred in Kentucky by her owners, Farrell has an 8-2-2 record in 17 starts, with earnings of $1,064,777.