Arlington International Racecourse Barn Notes: Thursday, September 7

By Bailey Gallison —-

* Daddy’s Boo Leads Field in Avers Wexler Memorial
* Babybluesbdancing Proves Principal in Rolling Meadows

DADDY’S BOO LEADS FIELD IN AVERS WEXLER MEMORIAL

The first running of the $65,000 Avers Wexler Memorial Stakes for fillies and mare 3-year-olds and upwards drew a field of nine to the 1 1/16-miles event on the main track at Arlington International Racecourse Sept. 9. Going as race six – the first of three stakes that day – the overnight stake is headlined by Patricias Hope LLC’s Larry Rivelli-trained Daddy’s Boo, already a three time winner at the Chicagoland oval this meet. The 6-year-old stakes-winning daughter of Sweet Return (GB) made her 2017 season debut in May on the main track at Arlington a winning one, followed by a win on the turf and a nine-length score over the Polytrack before finishing second in her most recent race on the grass. Pedro Cotto, Jr. gets the leg up to ride this 14-time winner from post six.

Trainer Hugh Robertson will send out his 4-year-old stakes winner Princess Erindelle in blinkers for the first time. The daughter of Divine Park hasn’t won since the beginning of the year at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots but finished a very close second to Daddy’s Boo in her last race at Arlington on May 20. She’ll have the services of Arlington’s leading rider Jose Valdivia, Jr. as the duo breaks from post two.

Rivelli will also saddle Patricias Hope LLC’s Moms Choice, a winner at Arlington in her last two starts. Despite a rough first race of the season where the daughter of Kitten’s Joy was eased in the stretch, the 4-year-old returned to win on the Polytrack and the grass in her next two races. Santo Sanjur will pilot the stakes-placed filly from gate nine.

Curlinup (Jose Lopez, post one), Bonita Cat (Mitchell Murrill, post three), Majestic Angel (Carlos Marquez, Jr., post four), Miss Mo Kelly (Julio Felix, post five), Skyluck (Edgar Perez, post seven), and Mundy Road (Chris Emigh, post eight) complete the field.

BABYBLUESBDANCING PROVES PRINCIPAL IN ROLLING MEADOWS

Lizbeth Gore’s Babybluesbdancing bested three other state-bred 3-year-old fillies on Sept. 4 to take the $63,818 Rolling Meadows Stakes for trainer Terrel Gore.

Piloted by Julio Felix, the daughter of Sky Mesa raced last of the quartet through opening fractions of 22.94 and 45.72 set by Royalty Farms LLC’s Al Ali-trained Royalty Princess under Carlos Marquez, Jr. V-Leaf Stables and Richard Ravin’s Shezahotmama, ridden by Santo Sanjur for trainer Larry Rivelli, overtook the tiring pacesetter and was clear two lengths as they covered six furlongs in 1:10.56, but Felix was able to urge his mount to the front and captured the win by 1½ lengths at the wire in a final time of 1:23.78. Richard Otto Stables’ Anthony Mitchell-trained Jolee finished another 4¾ lengths back in third, with Royalty Princess rounding out the field in fourth.

“To me, that wasn’t her best race,” said Felix. “The last time I rode her here she was full of run, from the time the gate opened she was on fire, but she shipped out of town twice to run in open company against good horses – once second and once fourth – but today she felt a little flat.”

“Last time she ran here it was on the Poly, and she won by seven lengths and I never had to ask her,” Felix said about Arlington’s Purple Violet Stakes winner. “She’s a stretch runner, but I had to get after her a little harder today than usual – she usually jumps into the bit and then takes me to the top of lane, and I bring her home. Today I brought her from the trees to the wire, but she’s so much fun to ride – she gives you her heart, her life. It’s a good feeling for me because I taught her how to run, and it just makes me feel good.”

Babybluesbdancing paid $2.80 and $2.10. Shezahotmama returned $2.40. With the winner’s share of $39,480 Babybluesbdancing increased her lifetime earnings to $195,301.

“She’s really special,” said owner Lizbeth Gore. “She was born at our house. Her mother died the night she was born. I bottle fed her ’til we got a nurse mare, so she’s just been really special from the very, very beginning. Really special. She was the very last horse born at our farm.”

“We were so un-pointed for this race,” said Terrel Gore. “It just came up all of a sudden; we weren’t expecting to run here again. Of course, we’ve obviously got to go for it when they come up with something like this. I was pointing her for the Remington Oaks, and we’ll probably still go to that.”

“She got the job done, that’s what’s important,” he added.