Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint: Goodnight Olive repeats - easily

ARCADIA, Calif. - Heading back to the Santa Anita paddock on Saturday following Goodnight Olive's successful defense of her Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint title, an exited fan approached trainer Chad Brown in search of an autograph.

"This is the guy, the best trainer ever," gushed the fan.

"I worked for the best trainer ever," Brown replied.

Brown remembers well the lessons imparted to him by his mentor, the late Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel.

"Every time I fly out to Breeders' Cup when it's at Santa Anita, I take my staff to go see Bobby," Brown said. "He's buried just two miles from LAX, so we go up to the cemetery to see him, we say a prayer, and he brings me good luck every time."

Brown might not have needed luck with Goodnight Olive in this year's renewal of the $1 million Filly and Mare Sprint.

Warmed up aggressively by jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., Goodnight Olive broke with alacrity from the inside post, and settled comfortably in third position as Eda and Society threw down fractions of 22.29 and 44.86.

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Ortiz angled Goodnight Olive outside on the turn, and the mare took off. She rocketed past the leaders and strutted home to win by a comfortable 2 3/4 lengths while completing the seven furlongs in 1:22.97 over the fast track.

Yuugiri was second. Three Witches finished another 1 1/4 lengths behind in third. Then came Society, Kirstenbosch, Clearly Unhinged, Eda, Matareya, and Meikei Yell.

Goodnight Olive (98 Beyer Speed Figure) returned $4.20 as the betting favorite.

Brown managed Goodnight Olive through various ailments before transforming her into a two-time Breeders' Cup winner.

"This filly has had bilateral ankle surgery twice," Brown said. "Very early in her career, both surgeries prior to her ever running in a stakes race. So, for her to come back from all that rehab as a very quiet horse, a real softie. Those are the perfect horses to train."

Yuugiri's trainer, Rodolphe Brisset, was elated with his filly's performance.

"Eda put pressure on Society, and we were where we wanted to be," Brisset said. "She dug in all the way."

Brisset said that the owner is leaning toward retiring 4-year-old Yuugiri to a career as a broodmare.

Three Witches captured Gulfstream's Grade 3 Princess Rooney, a Win and You're In for the Filly and Mare Sprint. She kicked up a ruckus in the paddock, but gave a career-best performance for third.

"She gets a little edgy," said trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. "Normally, she gets hot and washed out. Today, she was pretty good and ran well. We couldn’t be prouder of her. She's in the sale next week. We're thankful. We feel like a win."

Goodnight Olive, 5, was bred in Kentucky by Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings, and was purchased for $170,000 as a yearling.

Owned by First Row Partners and Team Hanley, she has won 9 of 12 starts for lifetime earnings of $2,196,200. Along with back-to-back Breeders’ Cup victories, she also nabbed the Grade 1 Ballerina Handicap in 2022, and the Grade 2 Bed o’ Roses and Grade 1 Madison earlier this year.

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