Miss Justify, Twirling Queen win Saratoga’s Friday features

Twirling Queen extended her win streak to four in a row for trainer Jose D’Angelo in Friday’s Listed $150,000 Coronation Cup, a 5 1/2-furlong Mellon turf sprint for sophomore fillies, at Saratoga Race Course.

Ridden by Luis Saez, Twirling Queen notched her third consecutive stakes triumph on the heels of determined victories in the five-furlong Melody of Colors over the Tapeta in March at Gulfstream Park and the Mamzelle going the Coronation Cup distance on turf last out on May 11 at Churchill Downs. Her win streak marks a perfect 4-for-4 record since moving to the D’Angelo barn in February.

Twirling Queen broke well from post 4 to race in the middle of the tightly-bunched field of seven through the first 100 yards before the rail-skimming Toupie emerged on top. However, the Irad Ortiz, Jr.-piloted favorite Ever So Sweet, who stumbled at the break, was hard sent from post 5 to grab the lead and marked the opening quarter-mile in 21.65 seconds over the firm footing.

“She broke from there pretty fast. I feel like she wanted to take the lead, but I knew the speed was outside,” Saez explained. “Everything came like the plan – we sat behind and let the speed go. We sit behind and she relaxed really well. When we came to the top of the stretch, she was pretty loaded.”

Ever So Sweet clung to a precarious lead as the field straightened for home, but was soon overtaken by an all-out Toupie with Twirling Queen bearing down on her outside after the half-mile in 44.68. The late-running Kairyu came flying down the center of the course to find her best stride in the final sixteenth under Jose Ortiz, but Twirling Queen got the jump and edged clear to post the three-quarter-length score over her oncoming rival in a final time of 1:01.93.

Kairyu held place by three-quarter lengths over the closing Cloudwalker with Toupie clinging onto fourth by a head over Dancing Duchess. In Our Time and Ever So Sweet completed the order of finish.

Twirling Queen captured a February optional claiming tilt at Gulfstream in her first outing for D’Angelo, and followed with her Melody of Colors win after outlasting the race’s heavy favorite El Terreno in a pace duel. Twirling Queen went on to show versatility in winning the Mamzelle with a stalk-and-pounce trip engineered by Francisco Arrieta last out.

“After she won first time for me in the allowance and she [was to] run in the stakes at Gulfstream, I said to Luis, ‘Go to the lead no matter what. You have enough horse to go wire-to-wire,’” D’Angelo recalled. “This race had El Terreno, the filly from Christophe Clement, who was very fast. I saw she could not get the lead and she was second and she got the win. So, when we went to Kentucky, I said to Arrieta, ‘Now I learned from her, that the running style is not a problem for her. Just have a good start, sit and make her move at the top of the stretch because she knows where is the finish line.’”

D’Angelo added Twirling Queen will likely make her next start in the Spa’s 5 1/2-furlong $150,000 Galway on August 10 as part of a path to the Breeders’ Cup this fall at Del Mar.

“Our plan is to try to go to the Galway next month if she’s good and later go to Kentucky Downs and finally the Breeders’ Cup,” D’Angelo said.

Bred in Kentucky by Pursuit of Success, Twirling Queen was a $15,000 purchase at the 2022 Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale and is out of the multiple stakes-winning Kantharos mare Adventurous Lady. She banked $82,500 in victory while returning $9.40 on a $2 win ticket.

Miss Justify surges up the rail to take Wilton

Miss Justify surged up the rail to take Friday’s $135,000 Wilton, a one-mile race for 3-year-od fillies which have not won a sweepstakes other than state-bred.

Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, the Justify bay doubled up on wins at the one-mile mark after a last-out pacesetting optional claiming victory at the distance on June 1 at Churchill Downs.

For Saratoga entries and results, click here.

“It’s nice to see that she can come from off the pace. She was able to win wire-to-wire last time, so it’s good to see,” said Pletcher, who started the filly for the third time after she made a pair of sprint outings for trainer Susan Cooney at Laurel Park, including a debut win in October ahead of a third in the Smart Halo in November.

Piloted by Flavien Prat, Miss Justify exited the Wilson Chute cleanly from post 1 as Kendrick Carmouche took Striker Has Dial to the front. Dazzling Move, breaking from the outermost post 7 under Hall of Famer Joel Rosario, wouldn’t let Striker Has Dial lead for long, quickly assuming command to lead the field through an opening quarter-mile in 23.71 seconds over the fast footing.

Around the far turn, the field crept up on the early pacesetter with Striker Has Dial leading the charge and the Luis Saez-piloted Pletcher trainee Courbe presenting a wide-bid from towards the back of the field. Meanwhile, Prat continued to sit chilly aboard Miss Justify as she saved ground along the rail.

After three-quarters in 1:11.46, Striker Has Dial had a clear 2 1/2-length lead at the top of the stretch as Dazzling Move called it quits, but Miss Justify took dead aim on the new leader from her inside position.

Carmouche asked Striker Has Dial for more and she responded gamely but desperately needed the wire, and a closing Miss Justify surged past along the rail to win by one-length in a final time of 1:37.51.

Striker Has Dial held on for second by a neck over Courbe, with 7 1/2 lengths back to Lady Moscato, who rounded out the superfecta. Favorite Bells Beach traveled in sixth position before improving to fifth late, with Windy Walk and Dazzling Move completing the order of finish.

Pletcher spoke highly of the ride engineered by Prat, who earned a riding triple on the day after other mild upset wins aboard Clever Mischief [Race 3] and Classic Creation [Race 7].

“I thought he did great,” said Pletcher. “We had kind of a game plan going in and the race didn’t unfold exactly the way we saw it on paper. So, he adapted like you’d expect an experienced journeyman to do.”

Bred in Kentucky by Killora Stud, Miss Justify banked $74,250 in victory while improving her record to 5: 3-0-1. She returned $7.50 for a $2 win bet.