Personal Legend a winner on dirt

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Life continues to be good for trainer Bobby Frankel and the stallion Awesome Again.

On Oct. 30, Frankel won the Breeders' Cup Classic with Ghostzapper, a son of Awesome Again. Awesome Again also sired the Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Wilko, a non-Frankel trainee who was going turf-to-dirt in his North American debut.

On Saturday, Frankel sent out another progeny of Awesome Again, Personal Legend, to a half-length victory in Saturday's Grade 3, $110,700 at Aqueduct. Roar Emotion, who made the lead inside the eighth pole, finished second, 4 3/4 lengths ahead of Fast Cookie.

Personal Legend had recorded her four career victories - including the De la Rose Stakes - on turf and had not raced on dirt since finishing second in the Grade 2 El Encino Stakes at Santa Anita in January. Frankel had considered shipping Personal Legend to Churchill Downs for next Saturday's $150,000 Mrs. Revere Stakes on turf, but his assistant, Jose Cuevas, told him to run her here.

"I figured she was getting a little one-paced and she was losing her turn of foot, so I decided to put her back on the dirt," said Frankel, who trains Personal Legend for Edmund Gann.

Personal Legend, under Jerry Bailey, was able to close despite a modest pace. Bailey had Personal Legend in mid-pack while Capeside Lady and Misty Sixes dueled through a half-mile in 48.88 seconds.

Bailey guided Personal Legend to the outside for the stretch drive, and she was able to run down Roar Emotion, who struck the front approaching the eighth pole after being forced four wide on the far turn.

Personal Legend covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:51.27 and returned $9.90 as the second choice.

"I didn't know if we were going to catch the other horse," Frankel said. "It looked like the other horse got just a little weak the last part.''

Kiaran McLaughlin, the trainer of Roar Emotion, was both pleased and frustrated at the same time with his filly's race. Roar Emotion was taking a class drop after facing the likes of Storm Flag Flying, Sightseek, and Adoration.

"I'm very happy with her race. She ran well," McLaughlin said. "She ran her 'A' race."