Perfect Alibi finds room on rail to win Spinaway

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The disparity in odds for Sunday’s Grade 1 Spinaway indicated that Perfect Alibi was fortunate to beat Frank’s Rockette in last month’s Grade 2 Adirondack Stakes.

Sunday, Perfect Alibi, sent off as the fourth choice at 5-1, proved that she’s simply the better filly as she squeezed through an opening along the rail in the stretch, exchanged bumps with Frank’s Rockette, the 9-5 favorite, and still prevailed by 1 1/4 lengths in the Grade 1 Spinaway.

The win came a month after Perfect Alibi beat Frank’s Rockette by a half-length in the Adirondack, a race in which Frank’s Rockette was bumped by another rival at the three-sixteenths pole.

“Even though Bill’s filly had some trouble [last time,] we did too, and this filly’s just a fighter, she keeps coming,” said Mark Casse, who trains Perfect Alibi for owner Tracy Farmer.

“I had no excuse today,” said Bill Mott, trainer of Frank’s Rockette. “The other filly beat us the other day and at 6 1/2 furlongs we [we were in front] today, but at seven-eighths she was better than us.”

Perfect Alibi, under Irad Ortiz Jr., was sixth of seven early, about 5 1/2 lengths off the pace after Mundaye Call ran an opening quarter in 22.65 seconds with Frank’s Rockette a stalking second.

Frank’s Rockette, under Julien Leparoux, stalked Mundaye Call through a half-mile in 45.45 seconds and took over from that one turning for home. Frank’s Rockette was in the two path, and Ortiz had cut the corner turning for home and rallied Perfect Alibi along the rail.

Perfect Alibi and Frank’s Rockette exchanged bumps in deep stretch, but Perfect Alibi persevered to get the victory.

“He put me in as tight as he can, but he never crossed the line my filly had to get through and she went for it, she fought,” Ortiz said. “There was a little bumping, my filly’s big, he didn’t do anything big. He tried to hold his line, I tried to hold mine, too, and the best horse won the race, to be honest.”

Perfect Alibi, a daughter of Sky Mesa, covered the seven furlongs in 1:23.44 and returned $12.40 to win.

“I don’t think the rail has been the greatest place to be today, but it didn’t seem to matter,” Casse said. “Sometimes it’s the shortest way which is better.”

Frank’s Rockette finished second by five lengths over Figure of Speech, who lugged in during the stretch run from Javier Castellano’s right-handed whip. Miss Peppina, Shippy, Ricky Mischief, and Mundaye Call completed the order of finish.

Though Perfect Alibi will be part of Casse’s contingent that vans to Belmont Park on Tuesday, she will likely make her next start in the Grade 1 Alcibiades on Oct. 4 at Keeneland.