Cilla surges on dirt in Blue Sparkler Stakes
Sittin at the Bar was an excellent Louisiana-bred racehorse and so is her daughter, Cilla.
Cilla won a Louisiana-bred stakes last month at Evangeline Downs and this week shipped to Monmouth Park, where she won the $75,000 Blue Sparkler Stakes by 2 1/2 lengths Saturday.
Dr B finished second, four lengths ahead of Decade in a field that scratched down to five runners after being moved from turf to dirt because of heavy rain on Thursday into Friday. Running Memories looked good for turf but lacked dirt credentials, yet still went off the 8-5 favorite, finishing fourth. Cilla ran 5 1/2 furlongs on a fast track in 1:03.07 and paid $12.20 to win.
Brett Brinkman trained Sittin at the Bar for owner P. Dale Ladner, and the same connections stand behind Cilla, a daughter of California Chrome. Sittin at the Bar won nine Louisiana-bred stakes during her career and has produced nothing but runners, with Club Car, a four-winner who has earned nearly $400,000, and multiple-stakes winner Jack the Umpire preceding Cilla.
Under Roberto Alvarado Jr., Cilla settled into a sweet inside spot a few lengths behind a three-way pace battle down the backstretch and into the turn. She came to the quarter pole full of run, slipped between Dr B and a tiring Running Memories, and had the Blue Sparkler wrapped up at the eighth pole.
“She’s as good as she has ever been right now, training-wise, maturity-wise and speed-wise,” Brinkman said. “She has finally gotten up to the speed I always thought she had. The race set up nicely for her. This filly has always liked a target. They gave us one today.”
And Cilla hit the mark.