Voodoo Dancer much the best

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - One race after finishing third behind Astra and Starine in the Grade 1 Gamely Handicap at Hollywood Park, Voodoo Dancer won the Grade 3, $168,900 Locust Grove Handicap Saturday at Churchill Downs by 1 1/4 lengths.

Bet down to 4-5 in a field that included Snow Dance and Megans Bluff, Voodoo Dancer gave her supporters no cause for worry. She stalked the pace in seventh place under Jose Santos, awaited room briefly leaving the backstretch, and inhaled the opposition in the stretch.

Voodoo Dancer, owned by Green Hills Farm and trained by Christophe Clement, raced 1 1/8 miles on firm turf in 1:46.91 and paid $3.60.

Blue Moon rallied to grab second, but did not threaten Voodoo Dancer in the stretch. Solvig was a head farther back in third. Snow Dance, the second wagering choice, finished fifth.