Y66-W7 AWM Grade 1 Round-up

Original article written by Evelyne Cergerac posted 2 months 3 weeks ago

Belated article (due to sickness) for the 2 Grade 1 stakes races for the All-Weather Miler division that took place in Week 7! As usual, a summary is written at the bottom of the article.

Both races were held on a sunny day at Artificial Arena (IL) and both had a purse of $200,000. First, let’s talk about the Blessings Stakes, which were restricted to mares and fillies. Eight contestants entered the race with Joseph Depaulo’s mare Temperedexpectations coming on top. The daughter of Bennie and the Jets keeps her winning streak intact. Despite a not-so-good start, she kept up with the front runners just a few lengths behind. When urged in the last furlongs, she proved to be the fastest out there, easily catching up with the then-leader. By mid-stretch, she had already taken back the lead and finished with a comfortable length margin.
Just behind her came The Vale of Sorrow, a 3 year-old filly bred and owned by Jack Meyer. After a great season in Y65, the filly has been frustratingly denied victory as she is once again ‘best of the rest’ in this race. She followed in Temperedexpectations’ hoofsteps, settling in the midfield before matching the speed of her main rival in the last part of the race, not able to find the strength to out-speed her.
In third position comes Insatiable, a 3 year-old homebred for Kent Saunders. She dropped far back in the early running after a bad start, settling in 7th position, roughly 8 lengths behind the leader. She was however able to overcome the odds to finish less than 2 lengths behind The Vale of Sorrow.

Second race was the Domination Stakes which were not gender-restricted. Nine horses took part in the race, all male. The race was won by the experienced Woodsboro, a 6 year-old homebred for Julin Sara. Despite his age, he continues to impress with his consistency. Woodsboro had a particularly strong run, setting the early pace, an authoritative pace as he opened up a 4-length lead. By the time jockeys urged their mount, Woodsboro was out of reach and won by a length.
In second place comes Reaching Immortality, a 3 year-old son of Reaching the Cup, bred and owned by Joseph Depaulo. The colt had been undefeated in 6 starts until he crossed paths with Woodsboro. Reaching Immortality hung further behind the leader, as is his custom. Unfortunately, the gap between himself and the leader was too great and for the first time, the colt failed to win.
Third place went to Sky Lobell, a 5 year-old son of the recently retired Matera Sky and a homebred for Lucas Davenport. It was his first attempt at a Grade 1 race this year and yet again, a win at this level eludes him. The stallion bravely kept up with the front runners, at some point even running in second place. While he couldn’t catch up with Woodsboro and could hold off the late charge of Reaching Immortality, he managed to cling to this third place, marking his best result in a G1 race.


Race Results:

Blessings Stakes - Purse $200,000 - 1 M - 3yo+ fillies/mares
1. Temperedexpectations (m. 5yo) - Bennie and the Jets x Cursed Knife (Curse of the Sun)
2. The Vale of Sorrow (f. 3yo) - Interpol x The Burning Vortex (Hot Dog)
3. Insatiable (f. 3yo) - Complex Puzzle x February Gold (Know How to Knock)

Domination Stakes - Purse $200,000 - 1 M - 3yo+
1. Woodsboro (h. 6yo) - Hot Dog x Mythicality (Mile After Mile)
2. Reaching Immortality (c. 3yo) - Reaching the Cup x Muggle Doctor (Avacas)
3. Sky Lobell (h. 5yo) - Matera Sky x Snowball Lobell (Snowflake)

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