Wait a While waits for no one

ELMONT, N.Y. - Todd Pletcher maintains Wait a While is a better filly on turf than on dirt. Maybe someday he'll get to prove that theory right.

Saturday was not the day, as the , scheduled for the grass, was rained off to a sloppy main track at Belmont. And, as she did here last fall in the off-the-turf Miss Grillo Stakes, Wait a While galloped to an easy front-running victory.

With Garrett Gomez simply "pointing her in the right direction," as Gomez put it, Wait a While jogged to a 4 1/2-length victory over Diamond Spirit in the $104,200 Sands Point. Because of the surface change, the Sands Point was downgraded from a Grade 3 race pending a review by the American Graded Stakes Committee.

The Sands Point scratched down to a four-horse field with Wait a While sent off the 1-2 favorite. Wait a While broke on top and set fractions of 24.14 seconds, 47.81, 1:12.47, and 1:36.54, and she covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.25. She returned $3 to win.

Wait a While, a daughter of Maria's Mon owned by Arindel Farm, is now 4 for 9 in her career. In addition to the Miss Grillo, Wait a While won the Davona Dale by 14 lengths in the slop. In her only start on turf, Wait a While won a maiden race by five lengths.

"She's obviously a nice filly on either surface, but I do believe she's a little better on the grass, though I might not ever get to do it," Pletcher said.

Pletcher said he will consider returning Wait a While to the turf in the $750,000 American Oaks at Hollywood Park on July 2.

Earlier on the card, Pletcher unveiled a good-looking juvenile colt in Scat Daddy, who won a maiden race by 5 1/4 lengths. Under John Velazquez, Scat Daddy covered the 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:03.75.

"He did pretty much what he's been touting us he'd do in the morning which is, I thought, run pretty impressively," Pletcher said.