Glory Me impresses in debut for DeVaux

The 2-year-old filly Glory Me won her debut at Ellis Park on July 14 with enough verve that she’s headed to Saratoga.

By Gun Runner out of Our Khrysty, by Newfoundland, Glory Me, a $975,000 auction buy owned by Lael Stables, sat sixth during the early stages of a 6 1/2-furlong maiden, hit full stride coming into the stretch under Brian Hernandez Jr., and drew clear for a four-length win. Visually, the effort felt stronger than her 64 Beyer Speed Figure and suggested Glory Me will comfortably get longer distances.

Trainer Cherie DeVaux noted that Glory Me broke awkwardly and didn’t find herself until she’d run half her race.

“I did not want to run her at Saratoga first time out, too much for her mentally,” DeVaux said. “She can be a bit temperamental to load. I wanted to give her a race where she’d tolerate the environment.”

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DeVaux didn’t push hard into Glory Be’s first start, saying she’d performed more on raw ability than full race fitness. The filly, a sister to recently retired Pyrenees, ships to Saratoga this weekend and has the Aug. 30 Spinaway as a goal.

Meanwhile, the 5-year-old mare Vahva, winner of the Grade 2 Chicago Stakes on June 21 at Churchill Downs in a bounce-back performance, is in steady training at Keeneland and remains on target for the $250,000 Pink Ribbon on Aug. 22 at Charles Town.

◗ Outfielder, the exceptionally smart debut winner of a May 23 turf sprint maiden at Churchill, resumed timed workouts in July. He had his third breeze this month on July 16 at Keeneland, and is on target to make his next start Aug. 17 at Deauville Racecourse in the Group 1 Prix Morny, trainer Wesley Ward said this week.

◗ Publisher, the nine-start maiden with a $425,000 bankroll, probably is headed to the $400,000 West Virginia Derby on Aug. 3 at Mountaineer Park, trainer Steve Asmussen said. Publisher, racing against a strong speed bias, finished a troubled fourth July 5 in the Indiana Derby.

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