Sea Foam wins stakes debut in Notebook; Fire Key captures Autumn Days

by Brian Bohl and Najja Thompson

Waterville Lake Stable's Sea Foam overtook Morning Breez in the final furlong, putting in a strong run from the outside to capture the fourth running of the $100,000 Notebook for New York-bred 2-year-olds in the first of two stakes Sunday at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Morning Breez led the eight-horse field through an opening quarter-mile in 23.35 seconds with the half in 47.38 on the fast main track with Sea Foam in close pursuit near the pacesetter. At 9-1, Morning Breez held the lead out of the turn before Sea Foam, under jockey Nik Juarez, surged down the stretch and outkicked a charging Stony Bennett in the final jumps to win by a length, completing six furlongs in 1:12.79.

Off at 6-1, Sea Foam won his second straight start, paying $14.20 on a $2 win bet in his stakes debut for trainer Christophe Clement. The Medagila d'Oro colt has never finished worse than second in five career starts (2-3-0) and nearly doubled his career earnings to $131,600.

"Sea Foam was coming off his maiden win and that time, I learned that when another horse comes to him, he gets really game," Juarez said. "So, last week, we worked him and he worked that same way. He had a horse laying off of him and he never let that horse get by. 

"Today that was the same strategy," he added. "Just keep him right off the lead and when the 8 [Stoney Bennett] came to me at the quarter-pole, I thought he was going by, but Sea Foam really dug in. Hats off to Christophe's team. They did a really great job."

Sea Foam improved to 2-2 at Aqueduct and ran with Lasix for the first time.

"The first-time Lasix might have helped a little bit. He ran really well here the other day [November 3] when he broke his maiden," said Christophe Lorieul, assistant to Clement. "It looks like he might like Aqueduct. He was very game today. The big favorite [Stoney Bennett] was coming to him from his outside and he kept on going. He might want to go a little further, coming into the race Christophe said three-quarters might really not be his game, but it worked out today."

Stoney Bennett, the 4-5 favorite for trainer Ollie Figgins, III, held off the Carlos Martin-trained Morning Breez by a half-length for second, marking the Bustin Stones colt's best stakes effort after running fourth last out in the Sleepy Hollow on October 21 at Belmont.

We Should Talk, Inalienable Rights, Analyze the Odds, What a Catch and Mr. Pete completed the order of finish.

One race later in the $125,000 Autumn Days for filly and mare turf sprinters, Paco Lopez executed a ground-saving trip to best a field of 12 aboard Backwards Stable's Fire Key.

Leaving the gate at 5-1 from post 2, Fire Key stalked form third position along the rail as Mo'ne Davis set swift fractions of 23.13 for the opening quarter-mile with the half in 46.50.

At the eighth-pole, Lopez shifted Fire Key from the tail to the three-path. Set down in a full drive, Fire Key surpassed a late-charging Ultra Brat extending away to the wire to earn the victory by 2 ½ lengths, completing six furlongs on the firm turf in 1:09.23.

"Today, I saw a couple horses trying to rush [to the lead], so I moved down [to the rail] a little bit," said Lopez. "Then I waited for the eighth pole and took her out of the hole and when I asked her to run, she gave me everything she had. She's a very nice filly."

Making her 17th career start, the 4-year-old daughter of Friesan Fire earned her fourth victory of the year and first stakes win returning $12 for $2 win wager, boosting her career earnings to $344,185.

"She's really come on all year long," said winning trainer Pat Kelly. "We just got nipped on Opening Day [second by a nose in an allowance on November 3] on the turf. Paco rode a great race. She really finished today. We thought there'd be speed from the outside and we [planned] to sit in there and take advantage of the post position and hope she'd finished good, and she did."

Following Stormy Victoria in second was First of Spring, Ultra Brat, Always Thinking, Kelsocait, Abbreviate, Eloweasel, Conquest Sarahstar, Mo'ne Davis, Five Hearts and Rumble Doll.