Giddings takes two stakes at Finger Lakes, one in a dead-heat
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Cozzy Trickstress and My Bestie hit the wire together in the $45,000 Shesastonecoldfox Stakes on Monday at Finger Lakes, finishing in a dead heat for the victory. My Bestie gave trainer Melanie Giddings her second stakes victory on the card, while Cozzy Trickstress dug in just enough near the wire for trainer Paul Barrow.
“It’s hard enough to win anymore,” Giddings said. “If we’ve got to share it, I'll share it.”
For much of the six-furlong sprint for juvenile fillies, it seemed like the two eventual winners might instead run in order around the track. Cozzy Trickstress, stubborn on front end, completed the opening quarter-mile in 23.25 seconds and half-mile in 46.30, turning for home with plenty left under jockey Kevin Navarro.
My Bestie, a last-out maiden winner making her third career start for Giddings, bobbled at the start before stalking in second on the backstretch for jockey Shaun Bridgmohan. She had a clear shot at the leader at the top of the stretch, but she drifted while in striking position and struggled to make up ground.
“I think a lot is her,” Giddings said. “I think she's been exceeding what we've really been asking her. She didn't have the best break, which probably didn't help her either. But we have always said from the start that I think she's going to be a better horse going longer.”
Eventually, Bridgmohan helped the 3-5 favorite gather herself for a rally, but the wire was coming fast and Cozzy Trickstress, the 9-2 third choice, was still giving her all for Navarro.
My Bestie appeared to get a favorable bob, but immediately after the race, Giddings said she did not think she had done enough to win. In the end, however, it was just enough, as placing judges failed to separate the horses at the wire. The two winners completed the six-furlong distance in 1:12.87. Cozzy Trickstress paid $3.80 to win, while My Bestie paid $2.28.
Redzone Gal, the 2-1 second choice trained by Debra Breed, kicked clear of four straggling longshots to take third, finishing 2 1/4 lengths behind the top pair and 6 3/4 lengths clear of the fourth-place finisher Financial Star.
Tin Cup Chalice
The favorites duked it out the entire way in the $45,000 Tin Cup Chalice Stakes, but with a strong kick under Shaun Bridgmohan, the Giddings-trained gelding Silver Knight easily edged away from Playinmindgames to win by 3 3/4 lengths.
“That was a nice way to close out our time at Finger Lakes,” Giddings said of her two stakes victories on Monday.
Before sharing the top prize in the Shesastonecoldfox later on the card, Giddings’s first stakes victory of the day came in more straightforward fashion. The 2-year-old gelding Silver Knight, who was denied the early lead when he finished second in the $175,000 New York Breeders’ Futurity last time out, took no chances to pick up his first stakes victory on Monday. The 3-5 favorite paid $3.24 to win.
Playinmindgames, the 8-5 second choice trained by Michael Ferraro, ducked out at the start but eventually straightened out to apply early pressure under Luis Perez. He chased close behind Silver Knight on the backstretch of the six-furlong sprint, forced the favored pacesetter to complete the opening quarter-mile in 23.04 seconds and half-mile in 46.17. Four longshots followed behind them in order all the way around.
Playinmindgames did not give in much and eventually took second by 2 1/4 lengths over the Linda Dixon trainee Bajan Sugar, but he never seriously challenged in the late stages. Silver Knight took advantage of his inside position and drew off in the stretch, finishing the six furlongs in 1:12.46.
“He’s always been a dude,” Giddings said. “He can get a little excited on the track and he just loves his job, but in the barn, he's about as cool as they come. He’s just a nice horse to have and be around.”
Giddings also said Silver Knight has shown some early promise on synthetic, which will lead him to Belmont Park for training over the winter. If he handles the surface well, the trainer will run him again in December or January.
Before her two stakes scores on Monday, Giddings had previously taken one stakes at Finger Lakes, when Hit the Post won the $50,000 Ontario County in September last year. She said races at the upstate New York track have become a priority for her, and she has acted quickly to capitalize.
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