A B Noodle finds herself loose on easy lead

SAN MATEO, Calif. - A B Noodle, unpressured on the lead, made a strong move on the second turn as she scored an easy victory in the Grade 3, $113,750 at Bay Meadows on Saturday.

Breaking alertly from the rail, A B Noodle grabbed the lead immediately and was able to set comfortable fractions when Hippogator, who set the pace in front of her in the Miss America on April 10, took back a bit.

A B Noodle ($16.20) began to open on the second turn while running a 24.45-second third quarter and went even stronger into the lane with a 23.68 fraction that allowed her to open a 3 1/2-length lead after a 1:36.05 mile. She defeated Marwood by three lengths in 1:46.66 in the about 1 1/8-mile turf race. Hooked on Niners was third with odds-on favorite Arabic Song fourth.

"Today she was just floating and floating nearing the half-mile pole," winning jockey Joe Castro said. "I knew they'd have to run really well to beat me because she was going too easy."

Trainer Chuck Jenda said he was pleased to see the fractions A B Noodle was putting up.

"From about the half to the three-eighths, Hippogator was testing her, but I could see she was going real easy," Jenda said.

Jenda said that he changed his training pattern with A B Noodle heading into the race.

"I know going a mile and an eighth is about as far as she wants to run, so I trained her hard," he said. "I felt if she kept her head in the feed tub, I'd continue to work her hard, and it never bothered her."

A B Noodle earned $68,750 for her first graded stakes victory.