Haileysfirstnotion runs down Spikezone in New Castle Handicap
In lieu of an appearance from the local star Quint’s Brew, Haileysfirstnotion and Spikezone put on a show of their own in the $125,000 New Castle Handicap on Friday at Delaware Park.
Spikezone did his best to kick away from the heavy favorite on the front end, but with a dogged late rally, Haileysfirstnotion and jockey Yedsit Hazlewood did just enough to get up and win by a neck for trainer Gary Capuano.
In Hazlewood’s first appearance at Delaware since leaving the Mid-Atlantic for Kentucky in July, the jockey picked up two stakes/handicap victories with Capuano and three total wins on the card. Of Capuano’s eight starters in stakes or handicaps, two won and none finished worse than fourth.
Quint’s Brew, the six-time stakes winner and morning-line favorite in the New Castle, had to scratch after sustaining a stone bruise on Thursday. Trainer Ned Allard said the timing of the setback made him sick, but the gelding is expected to be back in action next month.
Without the looming danger in the shortened field of four, there was little doubt that Haileysfirstnotion would assume the role of overwhelming favorite. In the 5-year-old gelding’s last start in June, he finished a half-length behind Quint’s Brew in the $100,000 Alapocas Run, giving the winner all he could handle on his home track.
Their rematch will be delayed for now, but despite going off at 1-5 in his rival’s absence, Haileysfirstnotion proved to be far from a lock in the six-furlong sprint on Friday. Jockey Jaime Rodriguez made his best attempt aboard Spikezone, urging the Jamie Ness trainee to an uncontested lead through an opening quarter-mile in 21.93 seconds.
Chipotle briefly gave chase behind the pacesetter on the backstretch, but he was the only one and didn’t do so for long before fading to third. Haileysfirstnotion was nearly seven lengths behind early on and had to hustle on the backstretch to stay in touch.
By the time Spikezone hit the top of the stretch, he was still three lengths clear, but Haileysfirstnotion was finally kicking into gear. Before the race, Capuano said he wasn’t sure how sharp his gelding would be off a nearly three-month layoff, but he had just enough time to pull it together in the end. Hazlewood kept him to task and cut into the margin with every stride to eventually win the photo. He paid $2.60 to win.
Haileysfirstnotion completed the six-furlong distance in 1:09.93, by far the fastest of seven sprints at the distance on Friday. No other winner on the card managed to complete the distance in under 1:11.
Spikezone, far from disgraced in second, finished 7 1/4 lengths clear of the Michael Gorham-trained gelding Chipotle, who easily took third by 9 3/4 lengths. Wickeddivine trailed throughout.
Martiniwithatwist takes Small Wonder
Martiniwithatwist avenged two losses in her stakes debut on Saturday, defeating multiple familiar rivals in the $125,000 Small Wonder. Capuano might not have scored with the 2-1 second choice Whitten Way, but his 8-1 outsider was game in a photo at the end.
In the first two starts of her juvenile campaign, Martiniwithatwist finished in the money behind Olivia’s Legacy and Cha Cha Baby before breaking through for her own maiden victory on July 31. Both of those fillies were entered in the Small Wonder, but Martiniwithatwist got the better of both of them, paying $19.60 to win.
Cha Cha Baby, the pacesetter who completed the opening quarter-mile in 22.95 seconds and half-mile in 46.56, did not factor in the stretch run, but Olivia’s Legacy was Martiniwithatwist’s lone challenger near the wire.
After getting bumped and crowded out of the gate, Hazlewood hustled the Capuano trainee from fifth to second, which allowed the filly to take a short lead when Cha Cha Baby faded on the far turn.
Olivia’s Legacy, the runner-up in the $75,000 Blue Hen in July, stalked all the way under Paco Lopez and never relented, but she came up just short in another photo-finish defeat. Martiniwithatwist prevailed by a neck, completing the six-furlong distance in 1:11.93.
U Better Kiss Me, a 21-1 longshot trainer by Nesvil Bailon, rallied from last to pick up third, a half-length behind Olivia’s Legacy.
Whitten Way, the last-out winner of the Blue Hen for Capuano, stumbled at the break and failed to sustain her late bid from fourth.
Strong Suspicion wins maiden in First State Dash
Strong Suspicion entered the $125,000 First State Dash Stakes as a one-race maiden, but the Lynn Ashby trainee was more aggressive in his stakes debut and dug in late to win by a head.
In August, Strong Suspicion and the Phillip Capuano-trained colt Walt’s Notion made their debuts in the same maiden race at Delaware, where Walt’s Notion proved more precocious in a 2 3/4-length victory.
The juveniles finished one-two again in the six-furlong stakes on Saturday, but this time, Strong Suspicion pushed the speedy 1-2 favorite and wore him out late. After earning respect for his runner-up finish last month, the Ashby trainee went off as the 4-1 second choice and paid $10.80 to win.
In a deep field of 10 2-year-olds, no one else was ever in serious contention while Walt’s Notion and Strong Suspicion dueled all the way around. Walt’s Notion and jockey Emanuel Rosario broke sharpest and took a short lead through an opening quarter-mile in 23.28 seconds and half-mile in 46.67, but Jose Batista hustled Strong Suspicion alongside him on the backstretch and never let him get away.
The front-runners were 2 1/2 lengths clear of the next challenger turning for home, and with a circling move, the Ashby-trained maiden pushed ahead to take a slight edge at the top of the stretch. The heavy favorite met his rival’s challenge and matched strides to the wire, but he could not make up the ground and was outfinished in a photo. Strong Suspicion completed the six-furlong distance in 1:11.22.
Midnight Rule broke slowly for Ned Allard but quickly advanced into third on the backstretch. He held that position by a neck at the wire, finishing 2 1/4 lengths behind Walt’s Notion.
Irish Jig dances to Distaff win
Irish Jig was the longest shot at 9-2 in the $125,000 Tax Free Shopping Distaff Handicap, but she proved much the best in the evenly matched field of five. Jockey Vincent Cheminaud guided the 3-year-old filly from last to first in a 2 1/4-length victory.
In her fourth start for trainer Kelly Lynn Deiter in July, Irish Jig made a breakthrough when she stalked to win the $125,000 Miss Disco by a nose. Delaware bettors were still not sure what to make of the Maryland-bred, however, as she entered the six-furlong sprint on Saturday off a distant defeat in the Grade 2 Charles Town Oaks. She paid $11.80 to win.
Dwelling Legacy, the 9-5 favorite and one of two entered by Gary Capuano, set the early pace, outgunning Pure Lure and completing the opening quarter-mile in 22.77 seconds. Sassafrassness was also prominent on the rail but had to back out of tight quarters and never re-rallied.
The pacesetter maintained command through a half-mile in 46.45, but she struggled to keep pace around the far turn and seemed to set things up well for her stablemate, Onyx Ten. The other Capuano trainee came calling from third and took a short lead at the top of the stretch, but Irish Jig and Cheminaud swung even wider to join the top flight.
Pure Lure and Dwelling Legacy ceded the front-end battle to the two closers, but Onyx Ten didn’t last much longer. With a powerful kick in mid-stretch, Irish Jig steadily ran away from her only challenger and completed the six-furlong distance in 1:11.61.
Onyx Ten finished 2 1/2 lengths clear for second over Pure Lure, who seemed to chase too close behind the early leader for trainer Mike Moore.
Understudy Kitty wheels back to take Lewes
Understudy Kitty returned to Delaware on six days’ rest and closed fast to win the $75,000 Lewes Handicap by three-quarters of a length. The 5-year-old gelding has won two handicaps at Delaware in his last three starts.
In Delaware’s only turf handicap on the Friday card, five horses in the field of 10 had previously run in the $75,000 Sussex Handicap at Delaware in August.
Understudy Kitty was a stylish 1 1/4-length winner for trainer Michael Matz that day, so the only question was whether he would try the short turnaround after finishing fourth in the $100,000 Bert Allen Handicap at Colonial Downs on Sept. 5. He went off at 7-5 and paid $4.80 to win.
In his second handicap/stakes victory on the card, Cheminaud was unhurried aboard the favorite, settling into sixth and backing up to ninth before making his move. The 44-1 longshot Dominguez took the early lead through an opening quarter-mile in 24.05 seconds and half-mile in 48.94 before fading to last.
Give It a Whirl, a 10-1 outsider switching from hurdles to flat racing for Mark Beecher, chased just behind in second early on and took over to become the clear target on the far turn. The distance runner effectively cut back to a mile and 70 yards and dug in when several rivals tried to close behind him in the stretch.
The gutsy longshot managed to battle back on Magical Mondays for second, but he could not hold off Understudy Kitty. In another commanding closing victory, Cheminaud was not afraid to split rivals and burst through a seam to get the job done. The Matz trainee completed the mile and 70 yards on turf in 1:44.14.
Magical Mondays and Pont Aven both fired explosive bids in the final stages, but neither contender was ever going to run down the winner. Magical Mondays finished a nose behind in third for trainer Tim Woolley and a neck ahead of Pont Aven.
Beautiful Blome wins Ogletown
Beautiful Blome, a 4-year-old filly trained by Anthony Pecoraro, overcame an awkward start to wear down Intrepid Mo in the $75,000 Ogletown Handicap on Friday.
Since winning the $125,000 White Clay Creek in October 2025, Delaware has become a highly comfortable home base for the Maryland-bred filly. She has now won 5 of 11 starts at the track and 7 of 19 starts overall.
In a shortened field of six fillies and mares, the Gary Capuano-trained filly Intrepid Mo seemed to have every advantage when Yedsit Hazlewood coaxed her along on the front end through an opening quarter-mile in 24.52 seconds and half-mile in 48.67.
The pacesetter maintained a comfortable lead all the way around the far turn and into the stretch, but jockey Paco Lopez still had plenty left aboard Beautiful Blome. After the awkward break left her behind in fifth at the start, she gradually picked off rivals until she was second turning for home.
No one else came close to challenging Intrepid Mo, who finished second by 2 3/4 lengths over the Lindsay Schultz-trained favorite Pink Ruby, but Hazlewood could do very little but watch as Lopez crept past on the outside. Beautiful Blome edged clear by three-quarters of a length at the wire, completing the mile and 70 yards in 1:43.82 and paying $5.80 to win.
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