Elate punches BC Distaff ticket in Fleur de Lis

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – On a night when he received his trophy for winning the Kentucky Derby with Country House, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott was able to celebrate with another stakes victory Saturday at Churchill Downs after Elate mowed down fellow Grade 1 winners Blue Prize and She’s a Julie to take the Grade 2, $250,000 Fleur de Lis.

Unlike the Derby, which Country House won via the disqualification of Maximum Security, the Fleur de Lis was decided on the racetrack, not by the stewards. The race was cleanly run, and Elate, capitalizing on a ground-saving ride from Jose Ortiz, was well positioned to tip out in the stretch and outkick her rivals by 1 1/2 lengths.

By winning the Fleur de Lis, a Breeders' Cup Challenge race, Elate received an automatic berth into the for the Nov. 2 Distaff with entry and travel fees paid.

“I think that’s what we’d like to do,” Mott said of the Breeders’ Cup. “There are two or three other important races on the schedule that we’d like to make but ultimately, when you have a Breeders’ Cup at the end of the year, you’d like to save enough horse for that.”

Although her trip worked out in the end, she looked to be in a challenging position early, stuck behind horses, as Skeptic waltzed to the early lead in the 1 1/8-mile race with fractions of 25.02 seconds, 49.70 and 1:13.85. Elate remained in fourth-place until pace-pressing She’s a Julie took over leaving the second turn.

Then the race was on. Blue Prize went after She’s a Julie and the two pulled ahead, taking turns poking their heads in front, but they would not repel the onrushing Elate ($3.80), who, once in full stride, was moving quickest. She hit the wire with a time of 1:50.33 over a fast track.

Winning rider Jose Ortiz said he wanted to be patient, and felt the best strategy was to follow Blue Prize, under Javier Castellano, after she went after She’s a Julie.

“I didn’t want to make a premature move and then have to check her a little bit because she’s so big – I didn’t want to do that,” he said. “So I waited until he made his move and went on. When she saw the clear, she exploded today.”

Blue Prize, the defending Fleur de Lis winner, finished a head in front of third-place She’s a Julie, the 124-pound highweight, who spotted her five foes four pounds apiece.

There was a gap of 7 1/4 lengths back to fourth-place finisher Go Google Yourself, who was followed across the finish line by Auspicious Babe and Skeptic. The latter was eased after setting the pace, but walked back comfortably to be unsaddled.

The Fleur de Lis was the first victory of 2019 for Elate, who chased Midnight Bisou in a pair of starts earlier in the year at Oaklawn Park, finishing second in the Grade 2 Azeri and third in the Grade 1 Apple Blossom. She won the Grade 1 Beldame and Alabama in 2017 for owners Adele Dilschneider and Claiborne Farm, and took the Grade 2 Delaware Handicap last year.