Belmont: Dayatthespa scores comeback win in You Go West

As widely expected, Dayatthespa made a successful return to the races at Belmont Park on Sunday, laying just off early pacesetter My Jopia to the far turn, taking command on the turn, and shrugging off a challenge from Kibosh to win the $90,000 You Go West Girl Stakes for New York-bred fillies and mares.

Making her first start since spooking in the early going of last fall’s Matriarch and sustaining a gashed right foreleg attempting to leap the inner rail, Dayatthespa ($2.50), a multiple graded stakes winner at 3, including the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II over Centre Court, got a nice confidence builder in scoring decisively beneath Javier Castellano, who kept the daughter of City Zip to a drive while widening late.

“It was a small group, but she was coming off a layoff and I didn’t want to hook up and get into a speed duel in the first part of the race,” said Castellano. “She settled beautiful…she responded and did everything the right way today.”

Dayatthespa improved to 7-1-0 from 10 starts for trainer Chad Brown, after running one mile in 1:33.52 over a very firm turf course.

“We were lucky to get her back,” said Brown. “She had a difficult experience in the Matriarch where she tried to jump the rail. For a moment we were considering retiring her. We didn’t think she would come back good. I’ll probably run her back in the Just a Game [June 8] if she comes out of the race good.”

Kibosh was clearly second best over Elusive Rumour. My Jopia faded to fourth, followed by Mystic City, as the field of five finished in parimutuel order.

Earlier on the card, Belief System ($32.80) and Lovely Syn ($2.90) won divisions of the New York Stallion Stakes for New York-bred 3-year-olds.

In the Times Square division, Belief System, the longest price in a field of five colts and geldings, rallied determinedly to edge 5-4 favorite Chapman by a half-length under Junior Alvarado, who was notching his third stakes win of the weekend after sweeping Saturday’s Fort Marcy and Beaugay. A gelded son of Read the Footnotes, Belief System ran 6 ½ furlongs in 1:17.35 on a fast main track, and won for the second time in as many starts since a trainer change to Rudy Rodriguez.

Chapman was clearly second best by 3 ¾ lengths over In Harm’s Way, who set blistering early fractions of 21.77 and 44.71 seconds before giving way.

Laila’s Jazz and Petrocelli completed the order of finish.

In the Park Avenue division, Lovely Syn was the overwhelming favorite over five rival fillies. She sped to the front after the break and widened steadily under Mike Luzzi to win by 9 ½ lengths, geared down at the end, and running the 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:16.33, nearly a full second faster than the boys a race earlier.

Lovely Syn is now perfect from three starts, by better than 18 lengths, for Dominick Schettino.

“She’s fast, she’s always been fast, but I’d like to see her break a little better,” said the trainer.

Bit Bustin outfinished Sharon Spagetti by a length for second. Keep Bustin, Jerusalem Stone, and Kilnockagain completed the order of finish.