Last Call on the track in the mist Thursday morning at Keeneland. Coady Photography
Frankie Dettori to ride her in Friday’s Juvenile Filly Turf
Breeders’ Cup Notes/Edited
LEXINGTON, Ky.–For a couple of reasons, Last Call is a bit different type of Breeders’ Cup horse. Purchased for $30,000 as a yearling at auction, she is one of the bargains of the 39th running of the World Championship. Last Call earned her berth in Friday’s Juvenile Filly Turf with a victory as a maiden in the Natalma, a “Win and You’re In” race at Woodbine in suburban Toronto.
Trainer Kevin Attard had three of the eight horses entered in the 1m Natalma. At 21-1, Last Call was the longest shot in the field. Under Rafael Hernandez, she made a four-wide move to the front and beat the favorite Cairo Consort by a length.
“I’d be lying to say I thought she was going to win,” Attard said. ”Obviously, we were trying. It was a Grade 1 in our backyard. We were hoping to get some graded placing for her.”
Attard said Last Call ran a nice race while finishing second in her debut and her connections expected her to break her maiden next start. She ended up fourth.
“She was a little bit disappointing that day. She was a little rank, in her race and wouldn’t settle early. We kind of went back to the drawing board. We took the blinkers off. We worked on kind of getting her to settle. I guess like most typical English Channels, she just continued to get better in the mornings in works.”
Well-known bloodstock agent Donato Lanni, who selected her out of the yearling sale and his X-Men Racing 2 partnership and SF Racing, asked Attard if it made sense to try her in the Natalma.
“The way she had trained, I said, ‘this filly is doing really doing well and I think she’s going to run well,’” Attard said. “Obviously, it was a pleasant surprise. She settled well that day, kind of kicked on when needed and held the rest at bay down the lane.”
Cleverly named Last Call, whose dam is Over Served, paid $44.30 in the Natalma. Lanni arranged for Frankie Dettori to ride her in the Breeders’ Cup. They drew post three and are 20-1 on the morning line.
“I couldn’t be happier with her,” Attard said. “She’s going in the right direction. I think she’s continuing to get better. I’m really excited about her. I think she’s a horse that is going to fly a bit under the radar, but she’s continuing to step up. In this race, she’s going to need to step up, but the way she’s training I couldn’t ask for more.”
