Dayatthespa Turns Tables in First Lady Stakes
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Dayatthespa rated in second for about seven furlongs before taking over and pulling away to capture the $400,000 First Lady Stakes (gr. IT) on the turf at Keeneland Oct. 4 .
Owned by Jerry Frankel, Ronald Frankel, Steve Laymon, and Bradley Thoroughbreds, Dayatthespa won for the second time in three starts this year. The 5-year-old City Zip mare was ridden by John Velazquez and is trained by Chad Brown.
With the victory, Dayatthespa surpassed $1 million in career earnings. The winner was bred in New York by Castellare DiCracchiolo Stable, Cracchiolo, and Goldsher.
Dayatthespa, who finished second in last year's First Lady Stakes, a head behind Better Lucky, turned the tables on that foe. Better Lucky was second, followed by favored Filimbi in third.
The early pace in the First Lady was set by Istanford, who set honest fractions of :23.65 for the opening quarter-mile, :47.57 for a half-mile, and 1:11.43 for six furlongs on a turf course rated good. Dayatthespa sat second from the start before she launched her bid near the top of the stretch.
Dayatthespa took over from a fading Istanford, opened up by two lengths, and wasn't threatened to the wire. She won by 1 1/4 lengths over Better Lucky, who rallied from mid-pack to take second. Filimbi, last early in a field of eight, was a neck back in third and a head in front of Centre Court in fourth.
The time for one mile was 1:35.21.
"She came out of (the starting gate) very well," Velazquez said. "(One of the owners) told me Chad (Brown) said make sure to drop inside going into that first turn. He didn't want to be three-wide early. She broke really well and the other speed went to the front, so it worked well. I was just holding it together and when I let her go at the quarter pole, she was all fresh. She finished unbelievable."
Said Mike Smith, who rode Better Lucky: "She ran really well. I needed to know her a little bit to ride her because she'll turn off on you pretty easy. If I had anything to do over, maybe I should have rode her a little harder the first part and then left her alone. She jumped (out of the starting gate) so well (that) I just kind of left her alone, and then she shut off."
Dayatthespa has performed exceptionally well on the grass at Keeneland. Along with her victory and second-place finish in the First Lady, the mare has won the grade I Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup and grade III Appalachian Stakes at the Kentucky track.
The second choice in the wagering, Dayatthespa returned $9.60, $5, and $3.20 across the board. Better Lucky paid $6.20 and $3.80, while Filimbi was worth $3.40 to show. The $2 exacta paid $54.60 and the trifecta $210.20.
Dayatthespa, who entered the First Lady off of a victory in the state-bred Yaddo Stakes at Saratoga Race Course, now has 10 wins in 17 starts with earnings of $1,188,892.