Red Ruby romps by 13 lengths in Delaware Oaks

This year's upper echelon of 3-year-old fillies got a little more crowded Saturday when Red Ruby validated her victory in the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan with a powerful 13-length victory in the Grade 3, $300,000 Delaware Oaks. The victory was Red Ruby's fourth in her last five starts and earned her a chance to take on the elite of the division in her next start.

Monomy Girl, who has won three consecutive Grade 1's, is the pro tem leader of a highly talented division. The upper tier also includes impressive Mother Goose winner Midnight Bisou. Queen's Plate winner Wonder Gadot and Road to Victory, runner-up to Monomoy Gal in the Acorn, also deserve to be in the conversation, as does Red Ruby.

Trained by Kellyn Gorder and owned by her breeders, Sandra Sexton and Brandi Nicholson, Red Ruby is now 4 for 6 and has scored open-length wins in three of her four starts this year. In addition to the Delaware Oaks and 4 3/4-length Black-Eyed Susan victory, she won the Martha Washington at Oaklawn Park by 2 1/2 lengths.

Gorder plans to point Red Ruby for the Grade 1, $600,000 Alabama, which will be run at 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga on Aug. 18.

"The Alabama has been our target, and the farther she goes the better," Gorder said.

Red Ruby broke running from the outside stall in the eight-horse Delaware Oaks and raced wide on the clubhouse turn while taking up a stalking position behind front-running 70-1 longshot Prospective Lady.

Paco Lopez sat still on Red Ruby until the far turn and then sent her to the lead. She quickly took control of the race and opened up, coming wide into the stretch, and then extending her lead while drifting out to the center of the track.

Coach Rocks, who kept Red Ruby in her sights early, finished well but was no match for the winner and had to settle for second, eight lengths clear of Mo Shopping in third.

Red Ruby paid $3.20. The $2 exacta with 2-1 second choice Coach Rocks returned $6.

The final time of the race was 1:42.41, following splits of 23.61 seconds, 47.26, and 1:11.02. Red Ruby covered her final sixteenth, while not being asked hard by Lopez in 5.93 seconds after a mile in 1:36.48.

Red Ruby has a history of being fractious in the post parade and warm-up and was a little revved up coming to the gate, although she did not misbehave.

"She is not a nervous filly, but she is the kind that just wants to get it on," Gorder said. "She is not the kind that likes to wait around for the post parade and other the stuff. Once she got in the gate, she was fine."

Dashing Beauty: Jessica Krupnick holds on

At age 5, Jessica Krupnick has rounded into the best form of her career for trainer Tres Abbott. On Saturday, she just held on to score her first stakes win in the $75,000 Dashing Beauty, a six-furlong race for fillies and mares.

Jessica Krupnick improved her record to five wins from 16 starts. She races for Sycamore Racing V, a partnership that Abbott and his family manage.

Liz's Cable Girl and Angel At War hooked up in a speed duel in the Dashing Beauty and put some space between themselves and the rest of the field. Jessica Krupnick, meanwhile, commenced a wide bid on the far turn under Trevor McCarthy.

Jessica Krupnick hit the front outside the leaders in midstretch, then just held on by a nose over late-charging Lake Ponchatrain. Cairenn, who like Lake Pinchatrain raced well back early, rallied up the inside to finish third, a head behind Lake Ponchatrain.

Liz's Cable Girl was fourth, 2 3/4 lengths behind Cairenn.

Jessica Krupnick paid $27.80 in the seven-horse field. She was timed in 1:10.84.

The Dashing Beauty was the third of five legs in the MATCH Series filly and mare dirt-sprint division. The 10 points Jessica Krupnick earned puts her on the lead in the division and ties her with Page McKenney in the overall contest standings.