She Feels Pretty dominant in Hilltop victory

BALTIMORE, Md. – It was a good half-hour or so for trainer Cherie DeVaux - and a very good 98 seconds or so for She Feels Pretty on Friday at Pimlico.

Grade 1 winner She Feels Pretty, making her 3-year-old debut, towered over her foes on paper, and it played out that way in practice, as she rolled by 5 3/4 lengths in the $100,000 Hilltop Stakes for sophomore fillies going a mile on the Pimlico turf.

The filly, a Lael Stables colorbearer, was the second career starter for DeVaux at Pimlico. The first was Shotgun Hottie, who in the race prior, won the $100,000 Allaire duPont Distaff.

"Not a bad start at all," said DeVaux, who has three more horses entered in stakes on Friday and Saturday here. "I just hope our horses continue to run well, and run their race, and more importantly, come out of the race [well]."

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She Feels Pretty ($3.20) won her first two career starts, including the Grade 1 Natalma Stakes at Woodbine by 4 1/2 lengths last October. In her next outing, She Feels Pretty closed to finish third, beaten just a half-length, in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita. Although she was coming off that lengthy layoff, and DeVaux felt she was perhaps a work shy of ideal, she loomed large in the field that turned out, as the only previous turf stakes winner in the group.

"She had been training well, and you just hope they come back fresh from 2 to 3," DeVaux said. "As precocious as she was, you just hope they come forward."

She Feels Pretty sat a perfect trip under John Velazquez, under a long hold and in the clear in fifth as Roanan Goddess, a stakes winner sprinting on dirt, took the field through an opening half in 48.85 seconds on a turf course officially rated good after taking plenty of rain on Wednesday. Just Better, pressing the pace on the outside, took over around the far turn, but Velazquez was allowing She Feels Pretty to begin making up ground. The filly slipped between horses at the quarter pole and was briefly urged in upper stretch, quickly seizing command. Under hand urging, she continued putting daylight between herself and Just Better en route to her final margin.

"Pretty easy. She's very nice," said Velazquez, who won the Hilltop a record-extending fifth time. His previous wins came with Excited (2011), Coup (2021), Miss Temple City (2015), and Alda (2021).

She Feels Pretty stopped the clock in 1:38.59 for the mile.

The field strung out, as behind Just Better, it was 3 1/2 lengths to Waves of Mischief in third, another 6 1/2 back to Royal Wintour, and then Turf Rocket and more than 22 lengths to a fading Roanan Goddess. An objection by Jorge Ruiz, on Royal Wintour, alleging interference by She Feels Pretty near the quarter pole was disallowed.

Expatriate, fractious pre-race for her second career start, trailed near the halfway point and was eased in upper stretch by jockey Flavien Prat before walking off the course.

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