Hazel Park: Pink Pajamas romps in Regret Stakes

Pink Pajamas staked her claim as Michigan’s top 3-year-old filly in a big way on Friday night, running off with the $20,000 Regret Stakes at Hazel Park.

The first stakes race of the 2016 Hazel Park meet was for Michigan-bred 3-year-old fillies at six furlongs.

The daughter of Equality broke alertly and was placed on the outside hip of early leader and post-time favorite High Legend by jockey T.D. Houghton as the field crossed under the wire for the first time and opened up a first-quarter fraction of 24.20.Pink Pajamas kept up the pressure a length behind the leader as the pair headed into the backstretch well ahead of their other two rivals, and set a half-mile time of 50.10. She wore down High Legend’s lead through the straightaway, drew even with the leader as the pair entered the final turn, and had her well put away by the stretch run.

Pink Pajamas carried Houghton down the bullring’s stretch under a handride and drew off to an authoritative 12 1/4-length victory. High Legend, last year Michigan-bred 2-year-old filly of the year, carried on for second in her first defeat at Hazel Park in four tries and finished 9 3/4 lengths ahead of third-place Haley Power.

The winner stopped the clock in 1:17.50 over a fast track and paid $5 to win as the four-horse field’s second choice.

With the victory, Pink Pajamas improved her career record to three wins in nine starts for earnings of $52,755. It was her second consecutive win, entering the race off a 4 1/4-length allowance score June 17 at Hazel Park.

The outcome looked quite similar to last year’s Regret Stakes, when trainer Robert Gorham and owner Mast Thoroughbreds brought another fast-rising daughter of Equality, Trinity Revealed, into the race against the state’s defending juvenile filly of the year, and bested the heavy favorite. Trinity Revealed went on to win that year’s 3-year-old fillies division of the Michigan Sire Stakes and was named the state’s top sophomore filly of 2015.

Pink Pajamas was bred in Michigan by Campbell Stable, whose co-owner Lisa Campbell is the breeder of record for all five entries in Saturday’s Lansing Stakes at Hazel Park.