Leave No Trace ($31.60) fends off challenges to win Spinaway Stakes

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Leave No Trace validated her debut win here six weeks ago and also what trainer Phil Serpe thought of her since with a solid 1 1/2-length victory in Sunday’s Grade 1, $300,000 Spinaway Stakes at Saratoga.

Displaying good speed from the outset, Leave No Trace stalked the pacesetting Naughty Gal to the top of the stretch, then fended off challenges from Kaling and Wonder Wheel to give Serpe his first Grade 1 victory since Birdonthewire won the 1993 Vosburgh at Belmont Park.

Wonder Wheel, the 7-5 favorite coming off a blowout win in the Debutante at Churchill Downs two months ago, outfinished Kaling by 1 1/4 lengths for second. It was a half-length back to American Rockette in fourth. American Rockette bolted toward the outside rail from her 10 post and did well to get beat only 3 1/4 lengths.

Sabra Tuff was fifth, followed, in order, by Just Cindy, Apple Picker, Aunt Shirley, Naughty Gal and Miss Georgie.

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Leave No Trace, a daughter of Outwork, had won her debut here on July 20 by 2 3/4 lengths, earning a 77 Beyer Speed Figure, which equaled the highest figure of anyone in this 10-horse field.

That and the way Leave No Trace trained since - including a five-furlong work in 59 seconds on Aug. 21 - convinced Serpe to take a shot in the Spinaway.

“I don’t swear by Beyer numbers and sheet numbers, but I do use them as a tool,” Serpe said. “Her numbers were good, she’s training great, she worked in :59 for fun, you gotta go. You gotta take a shot, that’s what racing is, that’s what this whole thing is about.”

Serpe thought Leave No Trace would be sitting third or fourth early on. But she broke so sharp under Jose Lezcano, that Leave No Trace was one length behind Naughty Gal through a quarter in 22.84 seconds and a half-mile in 46.66.

Naughty Gal, under Jose Ortiz, was lugging out approaching the top of the stretch, which created room along the rail for Kaling, who, after breaking slow under Flavien Prat, shot through that opening to vie for the lead.

Leave No Trace kept on persevering and left Kaling, then held an outside-rallying Wonder Wheel at bay to the wire.

Leave No Trace, owned by Rob and Laura Vukovich’s WellSpring Stables, covered the seven furlongs in 1:24.03 and returned $31.60 as the seventh choice. She earned a 76 Beyer Speed Figure.

“The horse next to me was lugging out, I have to start moving a little early, I didn’t want the horse inside to keep going,” Lezcano said. “She did it so easy, I’m not surprised, she traveled like a good horse.”

Wonder Wheel was a bit wide but was always within two lengths of the lead under Tyler Gaffalione, who was riding her for the third straight time. John Velazquez was named to ride, but Gaffalione came available when Kentucky Downs - where Gaffalione was scheduled to ride - announced Saturday it was canceling Sunday’s card. Trainer Mark Casse confirmed that his owners will have to pay a double jock’s mount for making the change.

In the Spinaway, Wonder Wheel was late changing leads, but it probably didn’t matter.

“She didn’t change until about the sixteenth-pole,” Casse said. “I thought maybe when she changed, she would kick on again and she did. She ran good.”

Casse said he would point Wonder Wheel to the Grade 1 Alcibiades at Keeneland on Oct. 7.

Serpe said he hadn’t thought much past Sunday.

“We’ll see how she is and come up with a plan,” he said.