LOUISVILLE, Ky – The Derby City Distaff, it turned out, was over just after it began. R Disaster rocketed from the gate like a Quarter Horse, cruised through a very manageable first quarter-mile, and never looked back, increasing her lead from two lengths at the stretch call to 2 1/2 lengths at the finish under Tyler Gaffalione. A first Grade 1 for a 5-year-old Florida-bred mare, a career-best before a Kentucky Derby Day crowd. “She was poetry in motion,” Gaffalione said. “She flew out of there, and I was able to just put my hands down, leave her alone, and let her do her thing.” R Disaster got her opening quarter in 22.77 seconds, slow for a Grade 1 seven-furlong dirt race. Even-money favorite Splendora turned up the pressure, pushing R Disaster through a 22.28 second quarter-mile, but a half-mile split of 45.05 turned out to be totally manageable for a mare who hits her peak at six furlongs. Ways and Means, the 9-5 second choice, launched a bid between the five-sixteenths and quarter poles, briefly looming a threat, but R Disaster was having none of that, emphatically turning Ways and Means back. “I thought our chance was Tyler needed to give her a perfect ride,” said Saffie Joseph Jr., who trains R Disaster for Averill Racing and ATM Racing. “We talked about in the paddock, kind of staying out wide, kind of dropping in if we need to. If somebody wanted to rush up, we didn’t mind a horse going; we would sit off of them second. We didn’t want outside pressure, and I thought everything went to perfection. Tyler’s ride, you can give it full marks.” Making her first start since June 6, Ways and Means might not have hit her very highest level, but she had a chance at the pacesetter and could do no better than a clear second, 1 3/4-lengths ahead of third-place Usha. “She broke very good, I got her in a good position, and Chad had her ready,” said Jose Ortiz, who rode Ways and Means for trainer Chad Brown. “She put in a run. She ran a very good race. The other horse was just too good.” :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. R Disaster ripped through her seven furlongs over a fast track in 1:20.94 (99 Beyer Speed Figure) and paid $16.26. Bred by Ocala Stud and Michael O’Farrell Jr., R Disaster is by Awesome Slew out of Making Havoc, by Gottcha Gold – a deeply blue-collar pedigree. Splendora had won five in a row, including the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint, but caved in upper stretch and beat only Autumn Evening while some 10 lengths behind the winner. Splendora contracted a minor illness last month that forced her to miss a work, and it told Saturday. “I think she was just flat today. She got sick. She came back and worked well, but that’s not her,’ trainer Bob Baffert said. Joseph had thought R Disaster’s best chance at a Grade 1 was the Madison last month at Keeneland, but there she was forced into a faster pace than Saturday’s while running into two horses, Eclatant and Grand Job, who ran exceptional races. “We had no intention of coming to this race. We shipped her back” to Florida, Joseph said. First, it became apparent that neither of the Madison’s top two would return for the Derby City Distaff, and then Joseph noticed both Baffert-trained horses, Splendora and Usha, missed works. Ways and Means might be vulnerable first time after the long break. “I said, ‘Let’s enter and see, because this race could be falling apart.’ Obviously, these are good horses, but we felt if we’re going to beat them, we’re going to beat them now,” Joseph said. Next for R Disaster? Joseph wasn’t certain. The Grade 1 Ballerina at Saratoga is a goal, and after R Disaster saw out the seven furlongs Saturday, it brought the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint into play. R Disaster wasn’t even supposed to be at Churchill Downs on Saturday. She wound up in the winner’s circle. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.