Oaklawn: Street Story splashes her way to Dixie Belle victory

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Street Story withstood a claim of foul to win a wet $100,000 Dixie Belle before an opening-day crowd of 15,031 at Oaklawn Park on Friday. The track experienced intermittent rains throughout the afternoon, making for a sloppy surface.

Street Story helped her trainer, Steve Asmussen, and her jockey, Ricardo Santana Jr., get off to a fast starts in defense of their Oaklawn titles, while newcomer Noberto Arroyo, Jr., made a splash by winning four of the nine races on the card, including the nightcap with promising 3-year-old Bourbonize.

Street Story ($7.80) settled into a stalking position in the Dixie Belle, a six-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies, as More Than Beauty, Zip On, and Denali Cat Tale battled through and opening quarter in 22.11 seconds. Street Story, who broke from post 8, launched her bid on the final turn and dug in through the stretch for a length win over Questlie. It was another 1 ¼ lengths back in third to Racing Holiday.

“There was lots of speed in the race,” said Asmussen. “We were very fortunate with the draw.”

Following the Dixie Belle, the rider of Racing Holiday, Alex Canchari, lodged a claim of foul against the winner for interference near the five-sixteenths pole, but stewards made no change to the order of finish. Street Story won the first stakes of her career in the Dixie Belle, one start after finishing second in the $48,000 Letellier Memorial at Fair Grounds.

“She’s a very important filly to us,” said Asmussen, who trains Street Story for Whispering Oaks Farm. “She’s got a lot of pedigree. This was the first step to a very good career for her.”

Asmussen said he believes Street Story will stretch out to two turns. She is a daughter of Street Cry while her dam, Perfect Story, is a half-sister to Point Given.

Arroyo was on fire all afternoon at Oaklawn, with three of his four wins coming for the owner-trainer combination of Steve Landers and Cody Autrey. In the nightcap, run under darkening skies, he guided Bourbonize to a clear win in a first-level allowance at a mile. It was the first two-turn start for Bourbonize, who in his only other start won a maiden special weight sprint at Churchill Downs. Kellyn Gorder trains for Bourbon Lane Stable.

Friday’s opener was the earliest in the 110-year history of Oaklawn, beating by one day the Jan. 11 start in 2013. Despite the wet weather, temperatures were in the 50s in a stark contrast from earlier this week, when they dipped below the teens and forced the cancellation of training Monday.

Oaklawn resumes racing Saturday with the $100,000 Fifth Season, led by Cyber Secret.