Fall Classic ruled no-contest after jockey spill; Viva La Diva prevails in Harbourview
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Saturday's $50,000 Fall Classic at Hastings was declared no-contest after jockey Amadeo Perez was unseated by the race's second choice and defending champion, Apprehend.
Perez took his tumble about midway through the 1 3/8-mile race – which crossed the wire three times around Hastings's five-furlong configuration – in the middle of the homestretch. With medical personnel tending to Perez in a precarious spot, track announcer Dan Jukich announced the no-contest decision and implored the riders to pull up, which they did at the top of the final stretch run.
The 4-5 favorite, Run Rudolf, was leading the race by a couple of lengths over What's Shakin on the turn for home. After At Attention – like Apprehend, trained by Barbara Heads – led through the opening quarter-mile in 24.79 seconds, Run Rudolf made a beeline for a lead and appeared likely to prevail had the race not been scrapped.
Heads reported on Sunday that Perez has a small neck fracture, but there is no nerve damage nor need of surgery. He is expected to be out three months.
A Hastings spokesperson told Daily Racing Form that Perez, the meet's top jockey with 49 wins and $797,303 in earnings heading into Saturday's card, was transported to a nearby hospital after his spill.
Harbourview
As expected, Heads saddled the winner of the $50,000 Harbourview Stakes. It just wasn't the horse everyone expected to win who won.
The less accomplished of Heads's two 4-year-old fillies in the 1 1/8-mile stakes, Viva La Diva, bolted out to a seven-length lead over Someday Lady through an opening quarter in 23.68 seconds and expanded the margin to 15 lengths through a half-mile in 47.64. Viva La Diva's late-running stablemate, the 1-9 favorite Avana, who had 9 wins and a close second in 10 local tries prior to Saturday's race, sat way off the lead, spotting Viva La Diva 19 1/2 lengths at the half-mile marker.
"I would say that's the farthest Avana has given the field," Heads said.
Despite the astonishing margin between leader and trailer, it was all but certain that Avana would gather steam at some point, and that she did in the backstretch. She pulled even with Someday Lady near the top of the stretch, still six lengths back of Viva La Diva.
At this point, the seemingly impossible started to look plausible, as Avana continued to cut into her stablemate's lead, with Someday Lady fighting gamely to match strides. But it would prove too little, too late, as Viva La Diva wound up besting Avana by two lengths, with another length back to Someday Lady in third.
Ridden by Kimal Santos, Viva La Diva covered the distance in 1:50.68 and paid $20.80 to win.
"Diva is a very nice filly," Heads said. "I told Santos she will be much happier with the fall track today. She was running very easy and Avana just had too much to do to get there."
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