Super Surprise turns tables on favored Isabelle in Biogio's Rose
It was indeed a Super Sunday at Aqueduct.
Super Surprise, beaten 5 1/2 lengths by Isabelle in the Bay Ridge Stakes in December, turned the tables on that rival, stalking the favored Isabelle from the outset, before pulling away from her inside the sixteenth pole to win the $100,000 Biogio’s Rose Stakes by 2 1/2 lengths on Super Bowl Sunday.
Isabelle finished second, three-quarters of a length in front of Jules N Rome. Daisy Cutter, Legally Bay, and Dream On completed the order of finish in the race for New York-bred fillies and mares.
Jose Ortiz, riding at Aqueduct for the first time since Jan. 27, rode the winner for trainer Todd Pletcher and owner Mike Repole. Super Surprise, a daughter of Giant Surprise, improved her record to 4-2-2 from nine starts and pushed her career earnings to $462,300.
In the Bay Ridge, Super Surprise went four wide in the stretch while Isabelle rallied along the rail on a day when the inside was the place to be.
Sunday, the track played fairer but both Isabelle and Super Surprise utilized different tactics from the Bay Ridge.
Isabelle, under Kendrick Carmouche, went to the lead and set fractions of 24.87 seconds for the quarter-mile, 49.04 for the half-mile, and 1:12.96 for six furlongs. Super Surprise was within a length early on and drew on even terms with Isabelle at the five-sixteenths pole.
With Ortiz and Super Surprise keeping Carmouche and Isabelle in tight in the stretch, Super Surprise gradually edged clear to get the victory.
“He was going easy and I was going easy,” Ortiz said. “By the three-eighths pole, I made my move and I’m glad it worked well. I just appreciate the opportunity. She was very good today, just perfect.”
Super Surprise covered the 1 1/16 miles in 1:44.59 and returned $7 as the second choice.
Byron Hughes, who saddled Super Surprise in his role as Pletcher’s assistant, said the game plan Sunday was to let Super Surprise run to the first turn and secure a good position and play the race from there.
“Jose put her right on Isabelle’s outside shoulder; I thought it was a perfect spot for slow fractions,” Hughes said. “If you were going in 24, 49 on the lead, you had a pretty good shot of staying up there on the lead.”