Vahva scores first stakes win in Charles Town Oaks under cagey ride by Velazquez

Trainer Cherie DeVaux’s first start at Charles Town was a winner as Vahva got a great trip under John Velazquez and captured the Grade 3, $750,000 Charles Town Oaks on Friday night.

Vahva had been a half-length better than Undervalued Asset when the fillies met in a Churchill Downs allowance race in early May, and in the Charles Town Oaks she beat Undervalued Asset by 1 1/4 lengths. As Undervalued Asset struggled to push past 96-1 pacesetter Late Frost, Vahva and Velazquez swept past on their outside, hitting the front inside the final half furlong. Undervalued Asset was second by a nose over Late Frost.

Vahva was 3-1 as the field finished loading for the Charles Town Oaks but was hit hard by computer-assisted wagers and wound up paying a mere $4.80.

Vahva did look like a strong chance Friday night dropping in class from the Grade 3 Victory Ride at Belmont Park, where she’d been third behind the late Maple Leaf Mel, a top-class 3-year-old filly, and Dazzling Blue, a real talent in her own right. Velazquez rode Vahva for the first time in the Victory Ride and pulled all the right levers going around the small Charles Town oval.

:: Bet with the Best! Get Free DRF PPs and Cashback when you wager. Join DRF Bets.

Vahva did Velazquez a favor breaking sharply from post 1, and Velazquez did Vahva a favor urging her into the first of two turns to avoid being shuffled back, instead settling into the pocket as Late Frost led Undervalued Asset through splits of 23.37 and 46.82. The outside stalkers all wilted into the second turn, allowing Velazquez to steer Vahva outside at the quarter pole. Vahva still had a length to find at the head of the short Charles Town homestretch but rolled past the top pair under a hand ride, stopping the timer in 1:25.01 for seven furlongs on a wet-fast surface.

DeVaux trains Vahva for Belladonna Racing, Edward Hudson Jr., West Point Thoroughbreds, LBD Stables, Nice Guy Stables, Manganaro Bloodstock, Runnels Racing, Steve Hornstock, and Twin Brook Stables. Vahva is by Gun Runner out of Holiday Soiree, by Harlan’s Holiday, and her third win from nine career starts was her first in a stakes.

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.