Broadway Girls a determined winner of the $100K Blue Norther (Ernie Belmonte/Past The Wire)
Santa Anita Press Release
ARCADIA, Calif.— Dismissed at 16-1, but tough as nails throughout, Doug O’Neill’s Broadway Girls sped to the front and controlled Friday’s $100,000 Blue Norther Stakes at Santa Anita, winning by 1 ½ lengths while getting one mile on turf in 1:36.01.
Hustled from her number seven post position in a field of 11 juvenile fillies, Broadway Girls had a one length advantage on stablemate Ami Please going into the first turn and was never headed throughout while setting fractions of 22.79, 46.98, 1:12.07 and 1:23.95.
A gate to wire one mile maiden turf winner in her third start on Nov. 13 at Del Mar, Broadway Girls paid $35.80, $11.80 and $8.20.
“She’s got a lot of speed and so does Ami Please,” said O’Neill, who bagged his second win of the day. “We knew they were fast fillies and credit to Glenn (owner, Sorgenstein, of Ami Please), he said, ‘We can’t both win on the lead, one (of these) horse(s) is going to be in front,’ so we asked Frankie (Dettori, aboard Ami Please) to try to take off the pace to see if we could pick ’em up late and by doing that, it gave Broadway Girls a big chance.”
A daughter of Army Mule out of the Midnight Lute mare Fond Hope, Broadway Girls was purchased out of a 2-year-old in training sale earlier this year for $60,000 and is owned by Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson’s ERJ Racing, LLC, Pappas Horse Racing Corp and Neil Haymes. With the Blue Norther winner’s share of $60,000, she increased her earnings to $108,020.
“Today, she was more relaxed, calmer during the race and she didn’t get out as much,” said Maldonado, who is now two for three with Broadway Girls. “She was strong galloping out and pulling up. She’s a nice filly.”
Finishing second and perhaps unlucky, was Irish-bred Manhattan Jungle, who, with John Velazquez up, saved ground at the rail while a joint second to the inside of Ami Please in the run into the far turn. Shuffled back a bit a quarter out while awaiting room, Velazquez kept Ami Please at bay through the lane but couldn’t gain on the winner who also held sway during the gallop out past the wire.
Trained by Michael McCarthy, Manhattan Jungle, who finished a half length better than Ami Please, was the second choice at 2-1 and paid $4.00 and $3.60.
Ami Please, with Dettori up, finished a neck better than Tea N Conversation and paid $5.80 to show while off at 9-1.
Racing resumes with a nine-race card on Saturday with first post time at 12 noon. Admission gates open at 10 a.m.
