Well Graced First Stakes Winner for Well Spelled

Godstone Farm's freshman sire Well Spelled had his first black-type stakes winner Aug. 29, when his son Well Graced upset a field of seven other 2-year-olds to win the Strike Your Colors Stakes at Delaware Park.

The win in the 5 1/2-furlong race was also the first stakes victory for trainer Erin McClellan, who owns the Pennsylvania-bred gelding.

Off at odds of 29-1, Well Graced found the lead after a brief shuffle from the gate and set fractions of :21.47 and :45.85 through the first three furlongs. Coming off the turn for home, jockey Emilio Flores got to work aboard the leader as the field closed in, and Well Graced responded going into the stretch.

With Lippi Lorenzo chasing, Absolved put pressure on the outside while Aspect was closing on the inside. Sapphire Shilling showed a good turn of foot to join Aspect and, closing from either side, just missed Well Graced, who held on by a nose at the wire. 

With a final time of 1:05.16 over a fast track, only a neck and a head separated the second-place Sapphire Shilling and third-place Aspect from Lippi Lorenzo in fourth.

In his only other start, Well Graced took a 4 1/2-furlong maiden special weight July 26 at Penn National by 3 3/4 lengths to be his sire's first winner. 

McClellan, who has primarily trained horses at Penn National, has brought her earnings of $229,549 in 2015 to just over $1 million in 2017 and looks to be on track to equal or improve that record this year with earnings of $616,650 as of Aug. 29. 

Bred by Godstone Farm, Well Graced is out of the Attorney mare Nancy's Grace, who has produced three other winners and has a 2017 full brother to Well Graced named No More Martinis.

Well Spelled, a grade 3 winning son of Spellbinder, broke his maiden in his 3-year-old debut after finishing second in three starts as a 2-year-old. He took the Jersey Shore Stakes (G3) at Monmouth Park and the Gallant Bob Stakes at Parx Racing. He retired with a record of 4-3-4 from 17 starts and earnings of $364,160. 

The half brother to grade 2 winner Kobe's Back  has stood at Godstone for a fee of $1,500 since entering stud in 2015.