Gale wins Laurel's Geisha as odds-on favorite

Gale ($3) proved a popular winner in the $75,000 Geisha Stakes for Maryland-breds going a one-turn mile at Laurel Park. The Geisha was the first of six stakes races on the Saturday Winter Carnival program.

Trained by Jonathan Thomas, the 4-year-old filly took a few strides to find her best footing, then was sent up along the inside to press Artful Splatter through an opening quarter of 23.87 seconds.

Gale burst clear with a sharp second fraction to claim an uncontested lead, and turned into the stretch in front after a half in 46.83 and three-quarters in 1:12.11. Gale shortened stride in midstretch and flopped leads several times, noticeably tiring, but had enough to fend off Kiss the Girl's late bid. Gale completed the mile in 1:39.24 seconds while 2 3/4 lengths better than Kiss the Girl. Second choice Coconut Cake was another 7 1/4 lengths back in third.

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A $450,000 daughter of Tonalist, Gale has now won her last three starts at Laurel. That win streak was interrupted when she endured a troubled trip when the beaten favorite in the Grade 3 Comely Stakes at Aqueduct, her final start prior to the Geisha. In that race, she stumbled terribly at the start and was forced to make a premature wide move before tiring.

Wendell Fong takes Fire Plug

It took trainer Talie Lynch only 17 starts to saddle her first winner and it came in a big way with Wendell Fong ($15.20) in today's $100,000 Fire Plug Stakes at Laurel Park.

Lynch, a former assistant to Brittany Russell, Jeremiah Englehart, and Ray Handal, trains for Al Gold's Gold Square LLC. She received Wendell Fong, a 5-year-old son of Flat Out last summer. In his final prep for the Fire Plug, Wendell Fong finished second to Taco Supream in a salty allowance at Laurel on Dec. 3.

There was plenty of pace in the Fire Plug as Maryland Million Sprint Handicap winner Karan's Notion set a quick opening quarter of 22.17 seconds while pressured by stakes winners Lebda and Arthur's Hope through a half in 45.24 seconds.

Meanwhile, Share the Ride, recent winner of the Grade 3 Fall Highweight at Aqueduct, was cruising nicely behind the leaders. A big seam opened in between horses turning for home and Share the Ride burst through to take the lead.

Wendell Fong hung behind the hot pace, swung widest into the stretch, and wore down Share the Ride to score by a neck in 1:10.01 seconds. "It just felt like they were going really fast early on," winning rider Sheldon Russell said in a post-race interview broadcast by Laurel. "Drawing from the inside, I didn't really have any options but to sit quiet. To be fair, I actually clipped the two horse's [Laki] heels so I took a little stumble and was a little farther back than I wanted.

"He got so comfortable down the backstretch. When he jumped on his right lead, he was really trying. He's a professional horse."