Indian Burn starts slow but finishes fast

Indian Burn overcame a slow start by displaying a strong finishing kick to win Sunday's $65,000 for 3-year-old fillies by 1 1/4 lengths over Argent Affair at Aqueduct.

It was three-quarters of a length back to favored Funny Feeling in third. Wild News finished fourth, followed by E Z Passer and Milc Kids.

Indian Burn, a Kentucky-bred daughter of Indian Charlie, broke slowly and then got bumped soon after the start. Under Richard Migliore, Indian Burn raced in last for the first half-mile, kicked in while being tipped wide for the stretch drive and ran past the pacesetters in the final sixteenth to earn the victory. Indian Burn, owned by Carolyn Vogel's Cross Sabres Farm and trained by John Hertler, covered six furlongs in 1:14.05 and returned $17.40 as the fourth choice.

"Terrible start, great finish,'' Migliore said. "She was just a little bit anxious in the gate. I couldn't get her to get all four feet on the ground at once, so when they broke, she broke a half-step slow, and I got pinched. I figured on being last early, but I just would have liked to have done it more smoothly. But, at about the three-eighths pole, she really found her stride and I knew she was going to be very tough to beat.''

Indian Burn had not raced since winning her second start on Oct. 23 at Belmont. Hertler explained that Indian Burn developed a temperature about two weeks after the victory, and she was off the work tab for one month. Hertler said he was pointing Indian Burn to a first-level allowance race on New Year's Day, but that race didn't fill so he put the filly in the Ruthless. The race was originally scheduled for Jan.3, but postponed when that day's card was scrapped.

The next sprint race for 3-year-old fillies in New York is the $65,000 Dearly Precious on Feb. 14.

Cohen takes off after spill

Jockey David Cohen took off his final four mounts Sunday, including Ruthless runner-up Argent Affair, due to soreness suffered in a post-race spill earlier on the card. Cohen, the second-leading rider at the meet, was aboard A Saint Among Us, who fell after finishing third in the second race. Cohen rode Raceland - who finished last in the third - then took off for the rest of the day.

According to his agent Bill Castle, Cohen is expected to return to action when racing resumes Wednesday. Cohen's 24 wins over the inner track are second only to Ramon Dominguez, who has 30 after winning three more races on Sunday.