Altissimo repeats in Best of Ohio Sprint

Reigning Ohio-bred horse of the year Altissimo scored a repeat victory in the $150,000 Best of Ohio Sprint and Leona's Reward, one of the Buckeye State's top mares of the last several seasons, finally added the $150,000 Best of Ohio Distaff to her resume, with those two performances among the highlights as the state showcase program was conducted Saturday at Mahoning Valley.

Altissimo, who is trained by Richard Zielinski for Ronald Zielinski and Nancy Lavrich, won five stakes last year, highlighted by a nine-length victory in the Sprint at Thistledown. This year, the 6-year-old gelding’s early- and mid-season campaign included three stakes victories, against both statebred and open company. He then turned in one of his best efforts, finishing second by three-quarters of a length to Killybegs Captain in the Grade 3 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash on Sept. 21 at Laurel, setting him up for his Sprint defense against a pair of upstart 3-year-olds.

Dare Day's only loss in four career starts came when he was fifth in the Grade 3 Ohio Derby, in which Breeders’ Cup Classic-bound Owendale and Math Wizard made up the exacta. The colt was sent away as the second choice and set the pace in the Best of Ohio Sprint, clicking off an opening quarter of 22.24 seconds and a half of 44.28 on a fast track. Altissimo ($2.80) was second after the half under regular rider Christian Pilares, and was taking dead aim on the stubborn leader, who was three lengths clear at the quarter pole. Racing wide, Altissimo wore the younger runner down to win by three-quarters of a length. He stopped the clock in 1:09.90 for six furlongs - well shy of his own track record of 1:08.63 established last December.

Dare Day was three lengths clear of third-place Diamond Dust, who won the Juvenile on last year’s Best of Ohio program and is a multiple stakes winner this year.

Leona's Reward was an emphatic winner of the Distaff, leading wire-to-wire under Gerardo Corrales and drawing clear for a three-length victory over favored Magna Rose. Not only was she a dominant victor, she raced the 1 1/8 miles in 1:52.03, establishing a track record.

Leona's Reward ($9.80), who is trained by her breeder and co-owner Tim Hamm, has now won 12 stakes races, has finished second or third in seven others, and has earned $842,556. The Distaff was one prize that had eluded her; she finished fourth in 2017 at Belterra Park, and second last year at Thistledown.

Hamm trained two winners on the program, as Liberate ($4.20) made his return to his home state a winning one, pulling clear by 7 3/4 lengths for a wire-to-wire victory in the Juvenile under Irwin Rosendo. The gelding races for Hamm in his successful partnership with WinStar Farm. Liberate won the first three starts of his career, including a pair of stakes, in his home state by a combined 32 1/2 lengths. He then ventured out of state, finishing seventh in the Sapling Stakes going a mile at Monmouth Park.

Forewarned rallied for a 2 3/4-length victory to dethrone Mo Dont No in the Best of Ohio Endurance. The latter, Ohio's horse of the year in 2016 and 2017, had won the Endurance in three consecutive years.

Forewarned ($4.80), who is trained by Uriah St. Lewis, also established a track record, running the 1 1/4 miles in 2:04.41.

Moonlit Mission ($2.60) kept her win streak going in the $John W. Galbreath Stakes, closing in the five path to run down Nikki My Angel and win by 2 1/4 lengths going away.

Moonlit Mission has now won four straight races for owner and trainer Charlie Williams, incliuding the Tah Dah Stakes at Belterra Park.