Do the Dance steals the show in Kathryn Crosby
DEL MAR, Calif. – There are certain parts of the world where you can get arrested for stealing the way Tyler Baze and Gary Sherlock pulled off a heist on Friday at Del Mar.
Sherlock, who trains but is also an astute handicapper, noticed that there was no speed in the $78,450 Kathryn Crosby Stakes on Friday’s opening day at Del Mar, and he told Baze to go for the lead on longshot Do the Dance if no one else wanted it.
Do the Dance bounced out of the gate on top, no one challenged her through soft early fractions, and no one ever caught her as she scored a 13-1 upset by three-quarters of a length over favored Keri Belle.
Stop, thief!
“There was no speed in the race, and she broke her maiden wire to wire here,” Sherlock said. “I told Tyler if nobody goes, let’s go.
“Tyler got her to relax, and everybody relaxed behind them.”
Do the Dance ($28), the only 3-year-old in the 1 1/16-mile restricted turf stakes for fillies and mares, had to outrun four older runners after the scratch Friday morning of Glory. Do the Dance set fractions of 24.24 seconds for the quarter, 48.74 for the half, and 1:12.72 for six furlongs before polishing off 1 1/16 miles on the firm turf course in 1:41.75.
Keri Belle, the 6-5 favorite, rallied for second, a half-length in front of Amboseli in third. Dressed to a T was fourth, and Sobradora Inc last in the field of five.
The win was the fourth in 19 starts for Do the Dance, a daughter of Discreet Cat who has now won three times in seven starts on this course. This was her third win in her last five starts, and second straight, following a first-level allowance victory going a mile on turf last time out at Santa Anita on Oct. 21.
Sherlock owns Do the Dance along with Tom Mansor and the Purple Shamrock Racing stable of Jim Glavine.