Dougie D Oro repeats in Best of Ohio Babst-Palacios Memorial
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Dougie D Oro scored a repeat victory in the $100,000 Best of Ohio Babst/Palacios Memorial, rolling by 1 3/4 lengths as the first of three statebred showcase programs for the season was held Friday at Belterra Park.
Dougie D Oro ($3.20), who is owned and trained by Jerry Sparks, won both the Babst/Palacios and the Best of Ohio Honey Jay Stakes on last summer’s Ohio-bred showcase program at Thistledown. However, he was denied a sweep of the series for older dirt sprinters when he was edged by a neck by Morestride in the Best of Ohio Sprint last October at Mahoning Valley.
Dougie D Oro has now bested Morestride three times since the Sprint, finishing ahead of him while winning the Cardinal Handicap last November at Mahoning Valley, a Thistledown allowance to start this season, and now, another edition of the Babst/Palacios.
In Friday's renewal, Dougie D Oro, under Ricardo Feliciano, broke inward at the start, but quickly recovered his footing and was second, pressing pacesetter Midnight Warship, turning for home. He handily assumed command and was never seriously threatened in the final stages while finishing the six furlongs in 1:10.82.
Empire's Fire was second, 1 3/4 lengths clear of Hip Hip Hooray. They were followed by Midnight Warship, Morestride, Country Club Bobby, and McGraw.
In contrast to Dougie D Oro's win as the favorite, there was an upset in the sister race, the $100,000 Best of Ohio Diana for female sprinters. Squid pulled clear in the lane for a 5 1/2-length victory over Tivis. After the latter, it was another 4 3/4 lengths back to favored Amadevil, who faltered after racing with Squid ($8.60) in the early going. It was just the second career loss against Ohio-breds for the reigning statebred horse of the year.
The time for the six furlongs of the Diana was 1:10.89.
This was the third consecutive win, but first stakes score, for Squid, who is stabled with trainer Mike Maker's Turfway Park division and ships north into the state of her birth to race.
Squid was ridden by Ferrin Peterson for Maker. Earlier, the same connections teamed with Trojan Tale ($9.60), a 2 3/4-length winner over favored Fair and Square in the $100,000 Best of Ohio Green Carpet for 3-year-olds on the turf.
Trojan Tale, who ran the 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.13, was coming off a win in the Daryl E. Parker Memorial Tall Stack Stakes at Belterra on the first weekend of May.
* Soft Talk ($16.80) led a sweep of the exacta for trainer Joe Sharp with an eight-length victory over favored stablemate Sweet Shild O Mine in the $100,000 Best of Ohio Norm Barron Queen City Oaks for 3-year-old fillies.
Soft Talk, who had Luis Rivera in the irons, completed the 1 1/16 miles on dirt in 1:48.48.
* Rounding out the stakes action, favored Brilliant Journey ($5.40) coasted to a wire-to-wire victory in the $100,000 Best of Ohio Sydney Gendelman Stakes for older horses on the turf. He drew clear by 3 3/4 lengths under Albin Jimenez, finishing the 1 1/16 miles in 1:42.57.
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