Gulfstream Park: Sweet N Discreet goes long to win Sunshine Millions Distaff

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – His first choice turned out to be the right choice.

Trainer Todd Pletcher’s instinct was to run Sweet N Discreet in the $300,000 Sunshine Millions Distaff on Saturday at Gulfstream Park, as opposed to the Filly and Mare Sprint, and Sweet N Discreet came through by stretching out to 1 1/8 miles to capture the Distaff.

Sweet N Discreet had never been around two turns, and only in her last start, her 10th, did she even run as far as a mile. But rather than turn her back to six furlongs for the Sprint, Pletcher decided to go in the Distaff.

“We always thought a lot of her, especially when she was a 2-year-old,” Pletcher said. “It’s taken a while for her to get it together, and it took her trainer two years to figure out she wants to go long.”

Sweet N Discreet ($8) made a bold move on the far turn under jockey Joe Bravo to wrest the lead from the pacesetting Devil’s Cave, and she appeared headed for a clear-cut victory. Devil’s Cave tried to battle back, but Sweet N Discreet held her safe to win by 1 1/2 lengths.

“It looked like [Bravo] went into the far turn with a lot of horse and decided to blow the race open right there, and he was able to do it,” Pletcher said.

Devil’s Cave finished six lengths in front of third-place Toasting, the odds-on favorite, who made a mild bid entering the far turn but did not finish it off.

Burning Truth was fourth, and Dreamlicious trailed. Sky Skier and My Pal Chrisy were scratched.

Sweet N Discreet completed 1 1/8 miles on the fast main track in 1:50.21.

[Clocker Reports: Get Mike Welsch’s clocker reports from Gulfstream Park and Palm Meadows]

Sweet N Discreet, 4, is a daughter of Discreet Cat. Bred and owned by the Robsham Stables, she has won four times in 11 starts. In her only prior stakes try, she was second to Devil’s Cave in the Ocala Stakes, also for Florida-breds, here Dec. 29. All four of her wins have come at Gulfstream, where she has never finished worse than second in six starts.