La Cara springs frontrunning upset in G1 DK Horse Acor

Tracy Farmer’s Kentucky homebred La Cara made every pole a winning one under jockey Dylan Davis, as previously undefeated Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks-winner Good Cheer failed to fire in Friday’s Grade 1, $500,000 DK Horse Acorn, a nine-furlong route for sophomore fillies on Day Three of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by Hall of Famer Mark Casse, the Street Sense bay avenged a ninth-place finish after faltering as the pacesetter in the Kentucky Oaks by posting a dominant performance over a sloppy and sealed main track to score by three lengths.

Farmer, who twice won the Grade 1 Whitney here with Commentator [2005, 2008] as well as the 1997 Grade 1 Go for Wand with Hidden Lake, said he was thrilled to win a topflight race at the Spa with a homebred.

“We were running against a great filly in Good Cheer,” Farmer said. “This is the first time she ever lost, so this is tough competition here in the Acorn and at Saratoga. You just never know what is going to happen. It is just wonderful to win.

"I bred her, I've seen her and been with her every day of her life. You dream about this,” Farmer continued. “I've won the Whitney twice here, so I've won several [big races], Hidden Lake, I've won several Grade 1 races here... but this is the best, and today is the best." 

Davis and La Cara teamed up to win the Grade 1 Ashland in April at Keeneland in frontrunning fashion and the tactics were no different here as they rolled through splits of 23.40 seconds, 47.08 and 1:10.74 with the Michael McCarthy-trained and Umberto Rispoli-piloted Grade 2 Eight Belles-winner Look Forward tracking her speed.

La Cara led the field into the final turn as Saez implored Good Cheer to no avail from fifth position as Look Forward and the lengthy stretch run loomed the only impediments to the freewheeling leader.

Although La Cara grew weary late in the lane, she had enough in the tank to score in a final time of 1:49.20. Look Forward fought off a closing Scottish Lassie to earn place honors by a neck with Bless the Broken, Good Cheer and Quickick rounding out the order of finish. Shred the Gnar was scratched.

“She loves it here,” Casse said. “She won her maiden at Saratoga last year. In the paddock, Dylan said she could handle this kind of mud and was going to be just fine. I was just watching the splits, and I thought when he got away with a half in 47 [seconds] that was pretty good. And then at about the half-mile pole I could see that the others were hustling, and she was still relaxed. I never get too excited until they go under the wire. The [Kentucky] Oaks was disappointing, but we never lost faith in her.”

Davis said he was intent to get to the lead.

“’Plan A’ was come out running. That's what she likes to do best,” Davis said. “Came out, executed, she got to the front, and she did what she liked to do up front. She took control, got into a good rhythm, and she was taking me into the second turn nicely, and that was it. I know there were tough competitors behind us, but she showed her 'Game A' effort out there and she ran hard through the wire." 

Godolphin’s Kentucky homebred Good Cheer entered with a perfect 7-for-7 record for dual Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox, including a trio of Grade 2 scores ahead of her Kentucky Oaks coup.

“She wasn’t traveling. You could tell at the half-mile pole [Saez] was getting after her a little bit,” Cox said. “The winner was obviously well in front. It just wasn’t her day. Graveyard of champions, weather and tracks are a great equalizer. She’s performed on an off track. I’m not going to use that as an excuse. For whatever reason, she just wasn’t up for giving her ‘A’ effort today.”

Saez said he had no immediate excuses.

“Pretty good, trip. She broke pretty nice. She was just tired, very tired,” Saez said.

Rispoli said he was thrilled with the effort from Look Forward.

“I thought she ran an amazing race,” Rispoli said. “Irad [Ortiz, Jr., aboard Scottish Lassie] passed me on the outside just about a head, but she re-rallied for me and got a nice second, which is worth gold for her as a broodmare. She stays and was getting closer to the winner at the end.”

La Cara won 2-of-6 starts as a 2-year-old, including a win in the Grade 3 Pocahontas at Churchill Downs in September ahead of a fifth-place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies in November at Del Mar. She romped by 6 1/4-lengths in her seasonal debut in the Listed Suncoast in February at Tampa Bay Downs ahead of a runner-up effort in the Grade 2 Davona Dale one month later at Gulfstream Park.

La Cara is out of the Bernardini mare Cara Caterina, a full-sister to dual Grade 1-winning millionaire To Honor and Serve and Grade 1-winner Angela Renee. She banked $275,000 in victory to take her bankroll to in excess of $1.15 million, while improving her record to 11-5-2-0. She returned $17.40 for a $2 win bet.

Live racing resumes Saturday at Saratoga for a blockbuster Belmont Stakes Day program that includes five Grade 1 events among eight stakes in total on the 14-race card, culminating with the Grade 1, $2 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets [Race 13] and featuring two Breeders’ Cup “Win And You’re In” qualifiers for 3-year-olds and up: the Grade 1, $1 million Hill ‘n’ Dale Metropolitan Handicap [Race 8] going one mile out of the Wilson Chute [Dirt Mile] and the 5 1/2-furlong turf Grade 1, $500,000 Jaipur [Race 9] on the Mellon turf [Turf Sprint]. 

Live racing resumes Saturday at Saratoga for a blockbuster Belmont Stakes Day program that includes five Grade 1 events among eight stakes in total on the 14-race card, culminating with the Grade 1, $2 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets [Race 13] and featuring two Breeders’ Cup “Win And You’re In” qualifiers for 3-year-olds and up: the Grade 1, $1 million Hill ‘n’ Dale Metropolitan Handicap [Race 8] going one mile out of the Wilson Chute [Dirt Mile] and the 5 1/2-furlong turf Grade 1, $500,000 Jaipur [Race 9] on the Mellon turf [Turf Sprint]. 

A stacked card also includes top-flight racing with the Grade 1, $500,000 Woody Stephens presented by Mohegan Sun [Race 11], and the Grade 1, $1 million Resorts World Casino Manhattan [Race 12]. The stakes action kicks off with the Grade 2, $300,000 Wonder Again [Race 6] and includes the Grade 3, $400,000 True North [Race 7] and the Grade 3, $300,000 Pennine Ridge [Race 10]. First post on Saturday is 10:45 a.m. Eastern with admission gates open to the public at 9 a.m.

America’s Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga Race Course on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.belmontstakes.com/event-info/tv-schedule. 

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, and the best way to bet every race of the five-day meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.