Sabatini upsets Star Shoot, Vives lands five winners on opening card

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Sabatini aced the field in Saturday's $128,250 Star Shoot Stakes, while giving 2023 Sovereign Award-winning apprentice Sofia Vives her fifth win on the opening day Woodbine program.

Sabatini, who debuted with a third-place finish in a March 23 maiden special at Turfway, was dismissed at 13-1 in the six-furlong event for 3-year-old fillies.

Sabatini stalked stakes winners Mystic Lake and Dancing Duchess through the turn before Vives angled her into the five-path for the stretch. She switched to her right lead at the sixteenth pole before drawing clear for a 2 1/4-length score, in a time of 1:10.02.

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Mystic Lake, the 6-5 favorite, edged out Dancing Duchess for second. Rosa, C C Royal, Winsome Beauty, and the slow-starting Miss Roberts completed the order of finish.

Vives was riding without her apprentice allowance at 118 pounds.

“I could feel at the three-eighths pole I had a lot in the tank,” Vives said. “I just had to find an open spot. It all worked out. It was great for us. It was a perfect trip. She has a lot of heart. Hopefully, we can carry on this year with her.”

Sabatini ($28.70) collected $75,000 for NK Racing and LNJ Foxwoods. The $625,000 2-year-old purchase by elite sire Uncle Mo is trained by Josie Carroll.

“I loved her in her first race at Turfway,” Carroll recalled. “She ran up into some trouble. For a first-timer, she had every reason to back out, but she dug in and ran on to be third. I was so proud of her there.

“This stake came up with a small number of horses. It’s early in the year. She was training extremely well. With her pedigree, it would mean a lot if she got a piece of it. And I really believed in her, that she could get a piece of it. Did I expect that explosive performance? Probably not. But I believed she’s that kind or horse. I just didn’t know she was ready do that much already.”

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