Technical Analysis leaves nothing to chance with front-running win in Lake Placid Stakes

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - After registering a wire-to-wire 3 1/2-length victory over Runaway Rumour here Saturday in the $200,000 Lake Placid Stakes, the steadily improving Technical Analysis was paid a pretty special compliment by her trainer, Chad Brown.

“This filly is starting to remind me of a nice horse we used to train, Dayatthespa,” said Brown, referring to the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf winner who earned in excess of $2.2 million.

Obviously, Technical Analysis has a long ways to go to duplicate Dayatthespa’s success, but she’s off to a pretty good start. The 1 1/16-mile Grade 2 Lake Placid was her fourth win in her last five starts and second graded stakes success following her victory in the Grade 3 Lake George earlier in the meet.

With regular rider Jose Ortiz aboard, Technical Analysis took advantage of the relative lack of speed in the Lake Placid to take control of the race right from the outset from her inside post. Technical Analysis was pressed for over six furlongs by Spanish Loveaffair, bore out suddenly while disposing of that rival into the stretch, then increased her advantage readily once straightened away for the drive.

Runaway Rumour rallied mildly to run down Ego Trip to be second while never menacing the winner. Ego Trip, the only maiden in the field, raced in perfect striking position but could not muster the necessary closing response. Spanish Loveaffair weakened to finish fourth followed by Illiogami and Lovestruck.

Technical Analysis, an Irish bred daughter of Kingman, is owned by Klaravich Stables Inc. Her time for the distance over the yielding course was 1:46.49, and she earned a 92 Speed Figure. Technical Analysis paid $4.20 while giving Brown his third win on the card.

“She just keeps getting faster and stronger and bigger, and I can see she’s been getting more willing in her works and such,” said Brown when asked if the plan was to put Technical Analysis on the lead. “Too often we’ve been caught in these paceless races where we’ve had the best horse and they just close up on you. If my horse has some speed, like this one, I’m going to send them out there.”

Brown said he told Ortiz in the paddock before the race how Technical Analysis had already started to remind him of Dayatthespa.

“As [Dayatthespa] got older, she showed a lot of speed and went right to the lead, and I’m not going to take that away from this filly,” said Brown.

As for her brief transgression at the top of the lane, Brown said: “It’s something we have to work on and the only disappointing thing about the race. Jose said she started looking to the inside, and the more he grabbed hold of her the more she tried to get away from something. But once he straightened her out and turned her loose, she was nice and straight down the lane, so hopefully it was an isolated incident.”