Vergara becomes millionaire, takes Ladies Marathon

FRANKLIN, Ky. — The 4-year-old Vergara won one race in six starts during her 2022 campaign and on Saturday won her first race this year while making her fourth start. The filly is picking her spots wisely. A year ago, she banked $291,400 landing the Dueling Grounds Oaks at Kentucky Downs, and she came back to this European style racecourse and took down the $608,280 winner’s share of the Grade 3, $1 million Ladies Marathon.

Vergara and Joel Rosario took over the lead from tiring pacesetter Glenall with a little more than a quarter-mile to run and bravely held off a sustained challenge from Transient to post a three-quarters length victory. Sinfiltre finished third, three-quarters behind Transient and 6 1/2 lengths in front of fourth-place Personal Best, who was in a good spot with five-sixteenths of a mile to run but flattened out. Lady Rockstar never factored and was fifth, with Glenall fading all the way to last despite setting a slow pace.

Vergara paid $6.52 as the narrow favorite and clocked 2:10.96 for 1 5/16 miles – one lap around the course – on turf rated firm. The time was slow for the distance and class level, and jockeys said the turf was riding slower than firm in some places, especially on the far turn.

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Even considering a somewhat demanding course, Glenall’s opening quarter-mile in 26.12 was poky, though the pace picked up, the half going in 50.83. Around the dogleg right and down the hill into the far turn, positions remained basically unchanged, but coming off the turn, Rosario subtly asked Vergara for a little more, and she shot past Glenall, onto the lead, and down toward the rail, where the ground seemed best in the homestretch. Vergara still was in hand and had plenty left – and she needed it. Last at the five-sixteenths pole, Transient came inside Lady Rocktsar cornering into the stretch and jumped into the fray. She rallied outside Sinfiltre, who was trying to mount a challenge of her own, but Vergara found enough to hold sway.

“The other horse kept coming and coming, but my filly tries so hard,” Rosario said.

Perhaps the horse knows of the riches to be mined here at Kentucky Downs. It obviously was not lost on trainer Graham Motion that Vergara had handled this tricky track during the 2022 meet; Motion and his team had their horse ready for her best Saturday. Vergara started her year May 20 with a fifth in the Gallorette at Pimlico and was a close third in the Eatontown at Monmouth before setting the pace and winding up fifth, beaten less than three lengths, in the Glens Falls on Aug. 3 at Saratoga. At 1 1/2 miles, the Glens Falls might have been a little farther than Vergara really wants to run, and the competition was stronger for less money than the Ladies Marathon. The Glens Falls served its purpose, and Vergara came back to Kentucky fresh and ready to win.

Vergara, thanks to her affinity for this course, now is a millionaire. Owned by Gary Broad and bred by Neil Jones, Vergara is by Noble Mission out of Figure of Beauty, by Street Cry.

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