Personal Best gets up in La Prevoyanyte under heady ride from Ortiz

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Shug McGaughey couldn’t help but love the way the La Prevoyante unfolded. The Hall of Fame trainer was represented in the Grade 3 turf fixture by Personal Best, the Joe Allen homebred who relaxed beautifully for Irad Ortiz Jr. as she made her way through all three turns of the 1 1/2-mile distance.

Personal Best has “a little bit of a tendency to hang,” McGaughey said after Personal Best came through as the favorite in a field of seven fillies and mares in the 52nd running of the $150,000 La Prevoyante. “Irad just didn’t let her do that today. I told him in the paddock, ‘When you go, go,’ and he did that today. It was a perfect sort of setup, a perfect scenario, and Irad rode a perfect race.”

Personal Best, fifth for much of the way before launching her stretch bid, returned $4.60 after finishing in 2:26.04 over firm going. She was given a 91 Beyer Speed figure while prevailing by a neck over Transient, a 7-1 shot who had wrested command in deep stretch from pacesetting Adventuring, the 3-2 second choice.

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Personal Best, a 4-year-old gray filly by Tapit out of the standout Allen mare War Flag, now has won 3 of 9 starts. This was her first stakes win.

“She’s still kind of lightly raced and has some things to learn,” said McGaughey. “As we go along, I think we should have some fun with her. I imagine we could run her back in the Orchid,” a Grade 3 turf race at the same distance on the April 1 Florida Derby undercard.

The $2 exacta (2-6) paid $26.40, the $1 trifecta (2-6-5) returned $29.70, and the 10-cent superfecta (2-6-5-4) was worth $5.98.

Meanwhile, in a pair of Pegasus Day stakes run over Tapeta:

* Mozay ($7.80), last of seven fillies and mares past the quarter pole, swept past the field down the stretch for a half-length triumph in the $100,000 South Beach, getting a mile and 70 yards in 1:40.57. Jose Ortiz was aboard the winner, a 5-year-old Uncle Mo mare. Bill Mott trains Mozay, now a two-time winner from 11 career starts for owner-breeder Summer Wind Equine, best known as the breeder of Flightline, the 2022 Horse of the Year.

Kahiko was second, while Cafe Society, a lukewarm 5-2 favorite, managed third following a poor start.

* Wolfie’s Dynaghost ($13.20), always in a perfect spot under Florent Geroux, took over turning for home in winning the $100,000 Carousel Club for the second straight year. The 5-year-old Ghostzapper gelding finished a mile and 70 yards in a quick 1:37.74 in prevailing by 1 1/2 lengths over Skyro, the 3-1 favorite in a field of 11 older horses.

The Woodslane Farm of Lauren Woolcott bred and own Wolfie’s Dynaghost, who was making his first start in the care of Jonathan Thomas after being trained for his first 17 races by Tom Albertrani.

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