Green Carrera gets up in time to beat males in Let It Ride Stakes
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Stakes action at Del Mar’s fall meet kicked off in exciting fashion Friday when the 3-year-old filly Green Carrera edged out male rivals Deucari and Jordi Bear to win a three-horse photo finish in the $100,000 Let It Ride.
The three closers were all flying late in the mile turf race, but Green Carrera got up in time for new trainer Leonard Powell in her second North American start. She finished a neck clear of Deucari, who was clear by the same margin for second over Jordi Bear.
Though she was squaring off against 3-year-old males, Powell’s newest stakes winner was arguably receiving class relief after running in the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks in her North American debut in August. Still trained by Joseph O’Brien at that time, she garnered significant buzz but started slow and could only rally for fourth in that race. Her next start was delayed when she scratched from the Grade 3 Autumn Miss at Santa Anita because of a minor cut on her leg.
Before the Let It Ride, Powell said she did not miss any training because of her “superficial” setback in October, and she showed no signs of wear in her return. Unhurried in the early going Friday, she and jockey Umberto Rispoli settled into seventh while longshots Acknowledgemeplz and Ocean Bear vied for the lead. They blew through an opening quarter-mile in 22.67 seconds and a half-mile in 46.14.
Both early pacesetters faded back through the field in the late stages, along with stalking outsiders Tap the Gin and Pavlovian. The race was decided between the four early trailers, who all delivered strong stretch bids to overtake the flagging front-runners.
Jordi Bear, the 7-5 favorite trained by Philip D’Amato, made the first closing bid to take a short lead in midstretch, altering course in traffic and making a determined move between horses under Drayden Van Dyke. But Deucari, the 5-1 third choice trained by Richard Baltas, had a clearer path outside him, and Green Carrera was clearest of all closing on the far outside.
All three finished strong, but in a race that likely came down to the trip, Rispoli sealed the deal aboard his 9-5 filly. She paid $5.80 to win and completed the mile in 1:34.51.
Jordi Bear, who got the worst of the three-horse blanket finish, finished a length clear of Tailgunner Joe, a 14-1 shot who closed from last in his North American debut for Jonathan Thomas.
In nine career starts, most of which came in Ireland or Great Britain, Green Carrera has now won four starts, all of which have come at a mile on turf. She clearly has a new home in California, where she has now delivered two strong efforts against high-level 3-year-olds.
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