Nashoba's Key beats traffic in Hirsch

DEL MAR, Calif.-Apparently, it will take more than a case of crafty race-riding from a rival jockey to end Nashobas Keys undefeated streak.

In Sundays $300,000 Clement Hirsch Handicap at Del Mar, Nashobas Key overcame traffic in a field of four to win her sixth consecutive race, four of them stakes.

The victory emphasized her status as the leading older female in the West. To win the Grade 2 Hirsch over 1 1/16 miles, Nashobas Key needed a patient ride from jockey Joe Talamo, 17.

Talamo and Nashobas Key were held on the rail on the final turn by jockey Victor Espinoza, who was racing two wide aboard the Grade 1 winner Balance. For a few strides, Talamo had Nashobas Key idling behind the dueling front-runners, River Savage and Bai and Bai.

When Balance rallied between River Savage and Bai and Bai turning for home, Nashobas Key finally found room with a wide rally. She unleashed a remarkable kick to win the Hirsch by 1 1/2 lengths over Bai and Bai. Balance finished third, clear of a well-beaten River Savage.

I had so much horse under me, Talamo said. She had a kick that was out of this world.

Nashobas Key ($3) ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:48.29. Owned by breeder Warren Williamson and trained by Carla Gaines, Nashobas Key, 4, has earned $623,460.