Downtown Mischief climbs to 3 for 3 with Cicada Stakes
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OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Downtown Mischief remained unbeaten and added to trainer Linda Rice’s torrid run of success by winning Saturday’s $100,000 Cicada Stakes by 1 1/2 lengths at Aqueduct.
After taking pressure from a fast-starting Fabulously Funny and a slow-starting Hot Little Thing, Downtown Mischief, under Jose Lezcano, opened up a 2 1/2-length in midstretch. Though she was tiring a little late, Downtown Mischief held a drifting-out Tappin Josie at bay. Tappin Josie finished second by 3 1/2 lengths over Fabulously Funny. Fancy Azteca, Hot Little Thing and Musicmansandy completed the order of finish.
The win was the third in as many starts for Downtown Mischief, who defeated New York-breds in her first two starts. Downtown Mischief is a daughter of Into Mischief owned by Sheila Rosenblum.
The win was one of three on Saturday’s program for Rice, and 10th from the last 12 races in which she’s had runners over the last three Aqueduct cards. Rice had won seven consecutive races here entering Saturday’s card, a streak that ended when Hot Fudge and Customerexperience finished third and fifth, respectively in race 3.
Rice won the fourth Cumberland Blues ($3.70) before Ichiban finished fifth in race 6. After Downtown Mischief won the Cicada - and Rice’s Fancy Azteca finished fourth - Rice won the finale with Lifetime of Chance.
In the Cicada, Rice thought Downtown Mischief would be stalking Hot Little Thing, a speedy Indiana-bred making her 3-year-old debut. But she got away last while Fabulously Funny broke running under Kendrick Carmouche. Jockey Alex Achard rushed Hot Little Thing up to the front and there was a three-ply speed duel through a quarter in 22.89 seconds.
Downtown Mischief held her position between horses and came to the top of the stretch with a slight advantage over her pace pursuers. While Fabulously Funny began to fade, Downtown Mischief opened up and kept on persevering to the wire.
Downtown Mischief covered the six furlongs in 1:13.72 and returned $3 as the favorite.
Lezcano said when Hot Little Thing came up outside of him down the backside, “I held my position. At the quarter pole, when I asked her, she started running like the good horse she is.”
Rice credited Lezcano when the race didn’t necessarily set up as planned.
“Jose is such a pro, he never loses his cool,” Rice said. “When he needed to hold his ground, he did and I think that made a difference She was in a complicated situation, she worked her way through it, so I was really proud of her as well. She doesn’t need the perfect trip to get there.”
Rice, who has a meet-leading 35 victories, said she would point Downtown Mischief to the $125,000 Bouwerie Stakes for New York-breds at Belmont Park on May 29.
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