Hard to make a case against the fleet Gamine in Ballerina
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The champion Gamine will once again be a short-priced favorite to continue her dominating ways in the female sprint division when she heads a field of seven entered in Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Ballerina Handicap at Saratoga.
It was here last summer where Gamine fended off some pace-prompting from Venetian Harbor to record a seven-length victory in the Grade 1 Test, equaling the stakes record of 1:20.83 for seven furlongs established by Lady Tak in 2003. Lady Tak came back the following year to win the Ballerina, becoming the fifth of six fillies to post wins in both of Saratoga’s Grade 1 female sprints.
Gamine, is 8 of 9 in her career, and is 7 for 7 in races around one turn. That includes several blowout victories, such as her 18 3/4-length romp in the Grade 1 Acorn in 2020.
Gamine’s game is simple: Break and go. Few can run with her early, none have shown they can catch her late.
Gamine has run three times this year. Two were little more than paid public workouts, first in the Grade 3 Las Flores at Santa Anita and the Grade 2 Great Lady M. at Los Alamitos.
In her one real race, Gamine bobbled at the break but went on to win the Grade 1 Derby City Distaff at Churchill Downs by 1 1/2 lengths over Sconsin, who is one of her opponents Saturday.
“Went too slow early,” said Bob Baffert, who trains Gamine for Michael Lund Petersen. “She’s so fast you got to let her run. For some reason she struggles at Churchill Downs. She likes the Eastern tracks.”
As the 126-pound highweight under John Velazquez, Gamine will concede 3 to 12 pounds to her opponents. She also has the rail, making a fast getaway more paramount.
“She’s a brilliant filly, she’s been training well, so we’ll see what happens,” Baffert said.
Ce Ce, based in Southern California with Michael McCarthy, has yet to face Gamine. Though Ce Ce won the Grade 1 Beholder at Santa Anita in March 2020, McCarthy doesn’t believe she handles the deeper surfaces in California as well as the Eastern tracks.
“Outside of the Beholder, when we had a wet-fast racetrack, they’ve been average at best,” McCarthy said of Ce Ce’s California races. “That’s why we decided to get out of California.”
Ce Ce comes in off a dominant 3 1/4-length victory in the Grade 2 Princess Rooney going seven furlongs on July 3 at Gulfstream.
“Her race in the Princess Rooney was very good,” McCarthy said. “She’s come back and trained well. She’s put together some pretty good performances.”
Ce Ce, who breaks from post 7 and was assigned 123 pounds, will be ridden by Victor Espinoza, whose last mount at Saratoga came aboard 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, who was upset at 1-5 in the Travers.
Sconsin gave her trainer, Greg Foley, a thrill when she made a run at Gamine in the stretch of the Derby City Distaff, only to fall 1 1/2 lengths short. She has since come back to win the Grade 3 Winning Colors at Churchill and then finish second Bell’s the One in the Roxelana there on June 19.
Foley has targeted this race for a while, and is hopeful someone can apply some pressure on Gamine early on.
“Gamine, it’s a tough task but we’re going to try her again,” Foley said. “It doesn’t look like a tremendous amount of speed in this race on Saturday. That was the way it was at Churchill. [Gamine] had it her own way early.”
Irad Ortiz Jr., aboard in the Derby City Distaff, has the call on Sconsin from post 5 at 120 pounds on Saturday.
Estilo Talentoso finished third in the Derby City Distaff, then came back to win the Grade 3 Bed o’ Roses at Belmont Park. She comes out of a second-place finish behind Ce Ce in the Princess Rooney.
Lake Avenue, second to Estilo Talentoso in the Bed o’Roses, was beaten a neck by Bell’s the One in the Grade 2 Honorable Miss here on July 28.
Casual, trained by Steve Asmussen, is by Curlin out of the 2004 Ballerina winner Lady Tak. She was in need of a race when she finished third in the Shine Again here Aug. 4. That was her first race since May 15, when she emerged from a second-place finish in the Skipat Stakes with an injury that required time off.
The longshot Truth Hurts, fourth in the Honorable Miss, completes the field.
The Ballerina offers a fees-paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint.