Clairiere catches Secret Oath, takes Apple Blossom
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HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Clairiere had a variety of obstacles working against her heading into the Grade 1, $1 million Apple Blossom Handicap on Saturday at Oaklawn Park.
But she did what class horses do – she overcame them.
Clairiere, a confirmed closer, used just about every inch of the Oaklawn stretch to get past fellow Grade 1 winner and 3-5 favorite Secret Oath and win the Apple Blossom by a neck. It was another 3 1/2 lengths back in third to pacesetter Hot and Sultry, while the four-horse field was completed by I Feel the Need.
The Apple Blossom is one of the most important races on the calendar for fillies and mares and last year Clairiere closed for second to wire-to-wire winner Letruska. She was facing a similar pace scenario Saturday, as Hot and Sultry controlled the fractions on a track that had played to speed.
Adding to the drama was a distance that could be considered a tad less than optimum for Clairiere. She and regular rider Joel Rosario also were racing into a brewing storm that blew around the sands of the racetrack as the fillies and mares were speeding to the wire in one of Clairiere's best career performances.
“It was as good as it gets,” winning trainer Steve Asmussen said. “A mile and a sixteenth and the way she came home to run down Secret Oath. We saw the racetrack and how things were playing out. I thought she overcame it and Joel gave her a beautiful trip - straight to the wire.”
Clairiere ($5) settled in third early as Hot and Sultry was up by four lengths through an opening quarter in 24.01 seconds and a half-mile in 47.88. Hot and Sultry continued to lead through six furlongs in 1:12.09 before Secret Oath confronted the leader and moved past her at the top of the stretch. Secret Oath went on, as Clairiere took up the chase through the lane and ultimately covered the 1 1/16 miles on a fast track in 1:43.36.
“She really responded well,” Rosario said. “I thought Secret Oath was gone, but my filly responded really well, finished really well the last part. I was really proud of her.
“She tries really hard all the time. She’s a really honest horse.”
Tyler Gaffalione was aboard Secret Oath, who was favored after winning last month’s Grade 2 Azeri over Clairiere at Oaklawn.
“I thought I had them,” Gaffalione told track publicity. “The filly ran well all the way to the wire. She got run down. The filly pulled up good, came back happy, so, we’ll live to fight another day. ”
Clairiere, now 5, is a daughter of Curlin and $2 million earner Cavorting. She races for her breeder, Stonestreet Stable. Asmussen said the win was very meaningful on several levels Saturday.
“It was beyond fabulous,” he said. “It really means so much, a filly like her, Stonestreet putting her back in training. And, for her to win the race she ran a valiant second in last year - it was special.”
Asmussen said Clairiere will now ship to Churchill Downs and plans for her next race will be discussed with Stonestreet. He said a logical spot would be the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps, a race Clairiere won last year at Belmont Park following her start in the Apple Blossom.
Clairiere has now won 7 of 18 starts and the $650,000 first-place check Saturday pushed her earnings to $2,831,392.
Clairiere gave Asmussen a sweep of the two stakes on the card. Earlier on the program, he saddled Skelly to victory in the Grade 3, $500,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap. Overall, he won four races on the card Saturday.
“We’re very fortunate to have horses that are this good,” Asmussen said. “They make it all possible.”
Asmussen also credited his staff, including his Oaklawn assistant Darren Fleming.
The Racing Festival of the South continues next weekend with the Grade 2, $1 million Oaklawn Handicap. Attendance for the card Saturday was an estimated 35,000 and handle on the 12-race program from all sources was $12,173,022, according to figures provided by Oaklawn.
The track had to close its infield to revelers a few races out from the Apple Blossom due to a pending thunderstorm. The rains hit right after the race, so the fillies and mares were able to have riders-up in the infield saddling area. The sun came back out for the last race, and when finished a full rainbow stretched across the oval, from the first turn to the final turn at Oaklawn.
Racing resumes Sunday.
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