Piedi Bianchi splashes home an easy winner in Cardinal Stakes
Piedi Bianchi invaded from New York for the $150,000 Cardinal on Wednesday at Indiana Grand and proved much the best in the stakes, darting to a 4 1/2-length win over Fireball Baby.
It was Piedi Bianchi’s third win in the 1 1/16-mile race for fillies and mares bred in Indiana. The stakes was renamed the Cardinal this year after being previously conducted as the Francis Slocum. Piedi Bianchi won the Slocum in 2018 and 2020.
The Cardinal was one of four Indiana-bred stakes on the card. They were worth a cumulative $500,000.
Piedi Bianchi ($3) was scratched from the Grade 3 Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational in New York on Saturday and redirected to the Cardinal. She set the pace Wednesday, in a race run in the rain and on a sloppy, sealed track.
Piedi Bianchi cruised through fractions of 25.66 seconds for the opening quarter and was joined by Fireball Baby through a half-mile in 49.88. The pair continued on through six furlongs in 1:13.56. Piedi Bianchi began to separate herself from her rivals in the stretch and covered the distance in 1:46.34.
“My filly was doing it pretty easy,” winning rider Tyler Gaffalione said in a post-race interview broadcast by Indiana Grand. “She’s got a lot of class. When they came to me, I asked her and she gave me everything she had.”
Gaffalione added Piedi Bianchi did not seem to care for the off track on Wednesday.
Carlos Martin trains the daughter of Overanalyze for the partnership of Jay Oringer, Jack Bick, Al Bianchi Racing, Adam Bayroff, and Mike Maturo.
Piedi Bianchi earned $87,300 in the Cardinal to push her career bankroll to $823,497. The win moved her up from fourth to third on the list of all-time Indiana-bred earners, with the leader Bucchero, with $947,936, according to statistics provided by Indiana Grand.
Piedi Bianchi is a 6-year-old who is now 8 for 27. She is 4 for 5 at Indiana Grand.
To Much Coffee Stakes
Bayou Cat set the pace and went on to a 2 1/4-length win over Hard Luck Justice in the $150,000 To Much Coffee for 3-year-olds and up at 1 1/16 miles. It was another 2 1/2 lengths back in third to Strong Tide.
Bayou Cat ($18.40) set fractions of 24.29 for the opening quarter and 48.49 for the half-mile. He was joined on the final turn by Hard Luck Justice, as the pair raced through six furlongs in 1:12.85. Bayou Cat had more and went on to cover the distance on a sloppy, sealed track in 1:44.61.
Rodney Prescott was aboard the winner for trainer Tim Eggleston, an accomplished Quarter Horse trainer who was winning his first Thoroughbred stakes, according to a post-race interview broadcast by Indiana Grand. Bayou Cat races for Cathi Jones.
“He’s always got a lot in the tank,” Eggleston said of Bayou Cat. “The horse is great. He always gives you everything he has.”
Bayou Cat is a son of Turbo Compressor who was bred by Jones.
* Mowins ($3.80) won his second consecutive stakes race in the $100,000 Indiana Futurity, when he rolled home by 6 1/4 lengths over Blue Kalon. The winner stalked the pace and went on to cover the mile and 70 yards for 2-year-olds on a sloppy, sealed track in 1:45.63. Samuel Bermudez was aboard the son of Mohaymen for Clary Thoroughbreds and Penny Lauer. Lauer co-bred the horse with trainer Mike Lauer. Mowins was coming off a victory in the $103,000 Circle City at Indiana Grand.
* Holy Justice ($9.80) held for a nose win over Splash of Tonic in the $100,000 Miss Indiana for 2-year-old fillies. She was always prominent and covered the mile and 70 yards over a fast track in 1:46.41. Jose Riquelme was aboard the daughter of Harry’s Holiday for Southwest Racing Stables and Bruce Murphy. Genaro Garcia trains Holy Justice.