Tap to Open makes it three straight with Cathryn Sophia win
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Tap to Open, resilient in her stakes debut under Flavien Prat, willed her way to a photo-finish victory in the $200,000 Cathryn Sophia on Tuesday at Parx Racing. The 3-year-old filly has won three straight for Brad Cox and could be on her way to the Grade 1 Cotillion next month.
Coming off a gate-to-wire maiden victory at Churchill Downs and a prominent allowance victory at Ellis Park, Tap to Open predictably took care of business on the lead again at Parx. The 1-5 favorite seemed to handle the mile and 70 yards well on the good track, scrapping for command the entire way. She paid $2.60 to win.
Ms Sophistication, another last-out allowance winner trained by Jorge Duarte Jr., was Tap to Open’s sole challenger and gave her trouble throughout the race. Jockey Paco Lopez sent the 9-1 outsider early in her stakes debut, pressuring Prat through an opening quarter-mile in 23.27 seconds.
Tap to Open extended slightly while completing the half-mile in 46.95 seconds, but it wasn’t long before Ms Sophistication was on her again. Lopez sent her forward again to take a short lead on the far turn and held his advantage at the top of the stretch. The top two received no challenge from the rest of the field, leaving them to duke it out to the wire.
Cox’s heavy favorite had every right to cave after sustaining constant pressure on the taxing surface, but Prat kept his filly to task. As soon as Ms Sophistication showed a hint of fatigue herself, Tap to Open was in it again, battling her way back in front and holding a tight advantage to the wire. She prevailed by a head and completed the distance in 1:41.37.
Miss Fulton Gal, the only closer to do any running, picked up the pieces for third, finishing 2 1/4 lengths behind Ms Sophistication.
Just as the $200,000 Smarty Jones serves as the local prep for the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby at Parx in September, the Cathryn Sophia has proven to be an effective step for improving fillies to reach the Cotillion. Last year, Dry Powder won the prep before finishing second in the Grade 1 race.
It took Cox four tries to get his filly into the winner’s circle for the first time, but it has become much easier in her last three. She is now a stakes winner and could be taking the next step forward soon.
President's Sprint
With a furlong to go in the $75,000 PTHA President’s Sprint on Tuesday, the 18-1 longshot Mailata seemed to be backing out of contention after setting the early pace. But with a second wind and a little luck in front of him, the 3-year-old gelding re-rallied along the inside to score the upset by 2 1/4 lengths.
“It was good to see him get himself back together a little bit,” trainer Butch Reid said. “He’s always been a horse with a lot of talent.”
Mailata wrapped up his juvenile campaign with two stakes victories, including a 19-length romp in the $75,000 Future Stars male division in December, but bettors had reason to be wary ahead of his third start as a 3-year-old. In his prior two races, both stakes beyond a mile, he lost by a combined 68 3/4 lengths, giving Reid more than enough reason to cut back to 6 1/2 furlongs on Tuesday.
“We ran him long first time out of the chute and he wasn’t quite ready for it,” Reid said. “He had a nice turn-back to a sprint today and he handled it well.”
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Jockey Abner Adorno was not shy aboard the front-running longshot and sent him early to duel with his stablemate, Connor’s Crew, who completed the opening quarter-mile on a muddy, sealed track in 22.33 seconds. Connor’s Crew quickly faded to the back, allowing Adorno to comfortably pull ahead through a half-mile in 45.34.
Things went smoothly for a time, but when the 6-5 favorite Unwritten Rule ranged up outside of Mailata, there seemed to be little for the front-runner to do. The Thomas Proctor trainee made a big move on the far turn and swept by to take a lengthening lead at the top of the stretch.
Then Unwritten Rule stopped. In his first start on dirt since April and first start on a wet track since his February debut, the heavy favorite quit in midstretch and began fading back to the challengers behind.
Adorno seemed to sense the moment and re-engaged aboard Mailata, sending the early leader back up the rail to win easily at the end. He completed the 6 1/2-furlong distance in 1:17.99 and paid $38.20 to win.
Flyin Hawaiian, an 11-1 outsider and Reid’s third runner in the field of six, rallied from last and charged down the center to nip Unwritten Rule by a head for second. The $1 exacta with the two Reid trainees paid $117.
The PTHA President’s Sprint was the last race on the Parx card to be run on a muddy, sealed track. The condition was upgraded to good for the remaining four stakes.
In his last five starts, Mailata has won three stakes at sprint distances and finished last by nearly a half-furlong in two stakes beyond a mile. Reid’s experiments with route distances are likely over for now.
State Representative's Sprint
With a picture-perfect trip under Flavien Prat, Fire Pit split rivals with a furious late charge to win the $75,000 State Representative’s Sprint on Tuesday. The 4-year-old colt has now won three straight for trainer Guadalupe Preciado.
Fire Pit entered the 6 1/2-furlong sprint with a winless record in 10 stakes attempts, but he has been a different competitor this year, most recently rattling off two straight allowance victories at Parx. After finishing second at 23-1 in the State Representative’s Sprint last year, he earned more respect in the 2026 edition and paid $10.60 to win.
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On Aug. 11, Preciado got a hint of Fire Pit’s attitude when he completed a five-furlong workout in a blistering 58.20 seconds. He was angry at the exercise rider, but by all accounts, there was little to be done aboard the white-hot colt.
“The clocker called me and said, ‘Lupe, I’ve never seen this horse like this. He ran that poor kid ragged. Forget about it,’ ” Preciado said.
In Prat’s first ride aboard the typically prominent 4-year-old, he eased back to fourth in the early going, allowing Maximus Meridius and Buccherino to duel in front.
“Paco [Lopez] rode him once and told me it didn’t look like this horse needs to be on the lead,” Preciado said. “I said it all the time. I know he’s fast, but he goes all the time. Today, Prat told me he was going to see how he would rate.”
The favorites blasted through a blistering opening quarter-mile in 21.86 seconds. Spikezone, the 7-2 third choice, stalked just behind and joined the fray through a half-mile in 44.48.
All three front-running contenders were determined at the top of the stretch, but they were flagging too. The race seemed to be setting up for a closer. For a moment, it seemed to be Houghton Shuffle, who charged down the center from fifth to take a short lead.
The Bruce Kravets-trained outsider made the perfect move to take advantage of the pace scenario, circling the entire field, but he was simply outfinished in the end.
Prat, who managed to save more ground on the inside, lived up to his world-class reputation aboard Fire Pit. Instead of swinging wide around the far turn, the jockey bided his time behind the leaders before tipping out in the stretch. His colt showed great courage splitting rivals late and pulled clear by three-quarters of a length. He completed the 6 1/2-furlong distance in 1:15.72.
“He’s a good rider,” Preciado said. “All the good riders have patience. He’s in trouble, he waits and waits until he has the right chance, and then he takes off.”
Maximus Meridius, the zapped pacesetter trained by Reid, finished third, 2 1/2 lengths behind Houghton Shuffle.
Mayor's Mile
Margie’s Fun Son mustered a last-to-first rally to pull off a 16-1 shocker in the $75,000 Mayor’s Mile. The 6-year-old gelding re-entered stakes company on a four-race losing streak, but he turned things around in a hurry for trainer Ronald Abrams.
While most of the contenders in the field of six charged forward to vie for the early lead in the one-mile race, jockey Francisco Martinez and Margie’s Fun Son stayed well off the pace. The longshot ran alone in last, six lengths behind his nearest rival early on the backstretch.
Grand Mo the First, who carried half the field wide into the first turn, dueled with Stronsino through an opening quarter-mile in 23.84 seconds and half-mile in 47.34, trading positions while Nelson Avenue and Offaly Cool stalked behind. Margie’s Fun Son broke from the rail and was not impacted by Grand Mo the First’s wide trip.
Wild Vine, a last-out stakes winner trained by Jamie Ness, seemed to have the run of the race when he and jockey Yedsit Hazlewood made their move from fifth on the backstretch. The 7-year-old kept advancing and took a clear lead on the far turn and into the stretch.
Hazlewood seemed set on keeping Nelson Avenue and Stronsino behind him, but he never had a chance of stopping Margie’s Fun Son. Martinez mustered the longest shot in the field for a massive charge down the center, rocketing past the tightly bunched field and pulling away by 3 1/4 lengths. He completed the mile in 1:36.87 and paid $35 to win.
Wild Vine, denied the win despite a competent trip under Hazlewood, finished second by a head over Nelson Avenue, who backed off and re-rallied for trainer Jorge Abreu.
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