Runaway Rumour up in time to win the Ticonderoga Oct. 30, 2022 at Aqueduct (Chelsea Durand)
By Mary Eddy – NYRA Press Office
ELMONT, N.Y.— Lawrence Goichman’s New York homebred Runaway Rumour, who has been on the board in five consecutive stakes, looks to notch her first win of the year in Tuesday’s inaugural running of the $125,000 Port Washington, a 1 1/16-mile inner turf test for older state-bred fillies and mares, at Belmont Park.
The 5-year-old Flintshire bay enters from a narrow defeat in the state-bred Mount Vernon on May 29 going one mile in her first start for conditioner Horacio De Paz. There, she pounced from six lengths off the pace to take a slim lead over the seven-horse field at the top of the stretch, but could not fend off the late rush of Marvelous Maude to be defeated a nose.
“She came out of it in good order and has been pretty straightforward,” De Paz said. “She’s a classy mare. Whatever you want to do, she does it. We didn’t have her a long time before her last race and she came to us in good condition with back class. She’s a pretty honest horse, and she got caught right at the wire. Overall, it was a good effort so I’m looking forward to running her.”
The consistent Runaway Rumour has won two stakes in 17-lifetime starts, including the 2021 Wild Applause in her open company debut. She earned graded black type later that year with runner-up efforts in the Grade 2 Lake Placid and Grade 2 Sands Point. Last year, she struggled to hit the board in the early part of the year but began her run of good form in September with a close runner-up effort to Vigilantes Way in the Violet at Monmouth Park to kick off her current streak of stakes placings that includes a win in the state-bred Ticonderoga in October at Belmont at the Big A.
Runaway Rumour has posted one breeze since the Mount Vernon, covering a half-mile in 49.63 seconds over the Belmont main track on June 23.
“She has handled the mile and a sixteenth well in her past performances, so that’s within her realm,” De Paz said. “She’s been working very good and she’s on the smaller side, so we don’t do a lot with her. We just try to maintain her and she hits the ground with good energy. I wish they were all as easy as her and ran as honest as her.”
Runaway Rumour boasts a 17-4-4-3 record with earnings of $461,530. Out of the multiple stakes-placed Elusive Quality mare Elusive Rumour, Runaway Rumour is a half-sister to multiple stakes-winner Myhartblongstodady and stakes-winner Scuttlebuzz.
Manny Franco has the call from post 1.
Hidden Brook Farm’s lightly-raced Sanura [post 2, Javier Castellano] will look to build upon a last-out third-place finish in the Mount Vernon for trainer Barclay Tagg. The 5-year-old Kitten’s Joy mare raced prominently throughout and put her head in front at the three-quarters call, but was overtaken by Marvelous Maude and Runaway Rumour down the lane and kept on well for show honors.
The talented chestnut has finished in the money in 5-of-6 starts, including a three-race win streak that began with a third-out maiden victory last March that was followed by a year-long layoff. She returned victoriously this March to take an open-company optional claimer before a similar score against state-breds one month later at Aqueduct Racetrack, defeating returning rival Whatlovelookslike by one length.
Bred by Mia Gallo, Michael Newton, Kenneth Ramsey and Sarah Ramsey, Sanura is out of the multiple graded stakes-placed Tomorrows Cat mare Nehantic Cat. She was purchased for $95,000 at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale.
Barry Schwartz’s homebred Whatlovelookslike [post 5, Flavien Prat] will vie to double up on victories after scoring a half-length coup in a one-mile state-bred optional claimer on May 26 here. Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, the 4-year-old English Channel chestnut was awarded a career-best 80 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort and makes her stakes debut in her 10th career outing.
Completing the field are stakes-winner Golden Rocket [post 3, Jose Gomez] for conditioner Patricia Farro; and owner/trainer Eduardo Jones’ three-time winner Freddymo Factor [post 4, Jason Huayas]. Sunset Louise has been entered for the main track only.
The Port Washington is slated as Race 1 on Tuesday’s 10-race card. First post is 1:05 p.m. Eastern.
