Seattle Stakes winner Alliford Bay a filly with a future

Trainer Blaine Wright said Alliford Bay came out of her impressive win in the Seattle Stakes last Sunday in good shape, but he wasn’t sure where she would make her next start.

“We are going to check out our options with her,” he said. “She could run here, or we might take her back to Golden Gate. Hastings also has races for her. We’ll give her some time to come out of it and go from there.”

Alliford Bay, owned by Vancouver real estate developer Peter Redekop, is undefeated in two starts, and the manner in which she won the six-furlong Seattle Stakes suggests she has a bright future. With Irving Orozco aboard, she broke a half-step slowly, but it didn’t take her long to collar Risque’s Legacy, who had won both of her races before the Seattle, including the Washington Cup 2-year-old filly race last year.

Alliford Bay and Risque’s Legacy dueled through honest fractions of 21.85 and 44.46 seconds, and Alliford Bay asserted her authority in midstretch, pulling away to win by 3 1/4 lengths in 1:08.92.

After the race, Orozco said, “She is the best horse I’ve been on this year.”

The 90 Beyer Speed Figure she received is the highest for a 3-year-old filly at Emerald since Karis Makaw received the same number in 2004.

“She beat a really nice filly last Sunday, and she also beat a couple of good ones when she won her debut at Golden Gate,” said Wright.

Eccentric Spinster and Fiery Lady finished second and third behind Alliford Bay in her debut. In her next start, Eccentric Spinster won a maiden special weight race by 6 1/4 lengths for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. Fiery Lady, trained by Steve Specht, won a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight race on turf by 3 3/4 lengths on April 29.

Alliford Bay is bred to be a good one. She is by City Zip and is the second foal out of the stakes winner Valentine Fever, who finished second in the Grade 3 Bourbonette Oaks at Turfway Park in 2008. Valentine Fever’s first foal is Venus Valentine, who won the Grade 2 Rachel Alexandra Stakes at Fair Grounds last year.

Wright doesn’t think Alliford Bay will have any trouble when she eventually stretches out to a middle distance.

“She’s not ready to stretch out right now, but she certainly has the breeding for it,” he said. “She doesn’t break that fast, but she recovers quickly, and it doesn’t take her long to get into a nice stride.”

◗ Friday’s feature at Emerald is a $15,000 conditional-claiming race for 3-year-olds and up. Party for One, trained by David Martinez, looks like the one to beat in the six-furlong dash, which drew five horses.