Fluffy Socks extends season one more race in Jimmy Durante Stakes

Fluffy Socks was beaten a nose by stablemate Ingrassia in the $100,000 Chelsey Flower Stakes at Belmont Park on Nov. 1, preventing his second consecutive stakes win this fall.

Following that race, trainer Chad Brown debated whether to start Fluffy Socks again this year, or start her winter vacation. The filly’s behavior made up his mind. Fluffy Socks will have her graded stakes debut in Saturday’s Grade 3 Jimmy Durante Stakes for 2-year-old fillies at a mile on turf at Del Mar.

“She’s been a horse that has consistently gotten better through her 2-year-old year,” Brown said on Thursday morning. “We briefly considered shutting her down, but she came out of it so well we decided to give her another start.”

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Fluffy Socks, owned by Head of Plains Stable, won the $150,000 Selima Stakes on yielding turf at Pimlico on Oct. 3 for her first stakes win. The turf course was rated soft for the Chelsey Flower. A firm course is forecast for the $100,000 Durante, which drew a field of 13.

Fluffy Socks, by the Cacique stallion Slumber, is the only stakes winner in the field. Irad Ortiz Jr., who was aboard for the Chelsey Flower, has the mount on Fluffy Socks, who is expected to race from a stalking position.

“I do think she’s a nice horse,” Brown said. “She’s got plenty of ability.”

Five fillies in the Durante have been second or third in stakes – Consternation, Invincible Gal, Javanica, Nimbostratus, and Pizzazz. Plum Sexy and Quattroelle each won a maiden special weight race in her last start in a way that suggests both could show further improvement.

Pizzazz was third in the Surfer Girl Stakes at Santa Anita on Oct. 4 and won a maiden race at a mile on turf at Del Mar on Nov. 1.

“She’s really developed in a short time,” trainer Richard Mandella said. “She could not be doing better, mentally and physically.”

Quattroelle won her American debut in a maiden race at a mile on turf at Santa Anita on Oct. 3, overcoming trouble in early stretch. Quattroelle was third in her debut in Ireland in August.

Invincible Gal led into the stretch and finished second to Fluffy Socks in the Selima, and was 11th of 14 in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Keeneland on Nov. 6. Invincible Gal, trained by Graham Motion, started from the outside post in the Juvenile Fillies Turf after drawing into the race from the also-eligible list. She was unable to overcome a slow start, and finished seven lengths behind winner Aunt Pearl.

Similar to Brown’s thinking, Motion said earlier this week that Invincible Gal was on the fence for the Durante in recent weeks.

“This was a little bit of an afterthought,” he said. “After drawing into the Breeders’ Cup, she took the worst of it with the post. She came out of it well, so we thought she deserved another shot.”

The post position draw for the Durante was not kind to Invincible Gal. She drew the outside post.

– additional reporting by Jay Privman