Mythical looms large in $175K Jersey Girl
Arindel’s Florida homebred Mythical dazzled in two stakes wins at Saratoga Race Course last summer, and looks to add to her tally in Thursday’s $175,000 Jersey Girl, a six-furlong sprint for sophomore fillies on Day Two of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.
The Jersey Girl is slated as Race 2 on Thursday’s card, which also features the Grade 2, $250,000 Belmont Gold Cup in Race 10 – a ‘Golden Ticket’ event offering the winner an automatic berth into the Group 1 Lexus Melbourne Cup; the Grade 2, $250,000 Intercontinental in Race 8; and the Grade 3, $300,000 Pennine Ridge in Race 3. First post for the 11-race program is 12:35 p.m. Eastern, with gates opening to the public at 11 a.m.
Trained by Jorge Delgado, Mythical has won 7-of-9 starts, with each victory coming by margins ranging from two-to-12 3/4 lengths. Last year, she started her career a perfect 3-for-3, graduating by 8 1/2 lengths in her April debut and following with a victory against males at last year’s Belmont Stakes Racing Festival in the Listed Tremont. The talented filly then posted a graded stakes victory in her first attempt, landing the 6 1/2-furlong Grade 3 Adirondack by 3 1/4 lengths.
“We’re very happy with her and we were planning on this race since early April,” Delgado said. “This was the first stakes at six furlongs for 3-year-old fillies, so we have been planning on this race for quite a while. We’re just looking forward to being there.”
Mythical’s lone Spa blemish happened in the Grade 1 Spinaway, where she dueled for the lead in the early stages and weakened to finish fifth 16 lengths behind the victorious Tommy Jo. Nevertheless, she rebounded with aplomb next out when returning to restricted company at her Gulfstream Park base with open-lengths romps in the Florida Sire Series Susan’s Girl and My Dear Girl – the latter at 1 1/16 miles – to close out her stellar juvenile campaign.
This year, the daughter of St Patrick’s Day started her campaign with an off-the-board finish in the Grade 3 Forward Gal in January, but has been perfect in two starts since with off-the-pace six-furlong wins in the Any Limit and state-bred Sophomore Fillies Sprint in March and April, respectively – all at Gulfstream.
Delgado said he was encouraged to see Mythical’s running style in her last two starts after being mainly a pacesetter last year.
“I think she can adjust – she can go to the lead, or stalking mid-pack,” Delgado said. “That’s something she didn’t have last year, but we know she can do that. That’s part of being more mature and mentally stronger.”
Mythical had a three-eighths breeze on Thursday at Monmouth Park, covering the distance in 35.40 seconds after a pair of half-mile works there on May 14 and May 21.
“She’s been breezing really nice, she breezed yesterday and came home in really good order. We’ve been doing that with her the last three times that she’s run six furlongs, the same routine and the same workouts – a couple of halves and then a three-eighths to tighten her up a little bit, and she’s responded very well,” Delgado said. “She’s just progressing and showing signs of more maturity and we’re very excited about this summer.”
Delgado added that the Jersey Girl is likely to serve as a prep for the Grade 1, $500,000 Test presented by Ticketmaster on August 8 at the Spa. Delgado is hopeful to make an impact at this year’s Saratoga meet, where he will have 10 stalls and a group of promising young New York-breds among his string.
“She’s matured very, very well,” he said. “She’s very calm, very professional, and pretty much all she wants to do is go to the track and train and breeze. She understands what she’s doing, and she knows when she’s going to gallop, when she’s going to breeze and she’s been doing amazing. We are hoping we can compete successfully in this race and after this, point to the Test.”
Out of the winning Brethren mare Lailoni, Mythical has posted a 9-7-0-0 record with $684,615 in total purse earnings. She will be piloted from the outermost post 6 by Edgard Zayas, who has been aboard for each of her starts this year after previous regular rider Emisael Jaramillo moved his tack to California.
Legion Racing, MHM Stables, Ed Stefanski and William Conlin’s Carmel Coast [post 1, Tyler Gaffalione] impressed in her return from a seven-month respite last out with a two-length optional claiming victory over the reopposing Paige Turner on May 1 at Churchill Downs.
Trained by Whit Beckman, the lightly-raced daughter of Omaha Beach shone bright in her career debut here in August, wiring a 6 1/2-furlong maiden by 5 1/2 lengths. She followed with a misfire as the favorite in the Grade 1 Frizette around a one-turn mile in October at Belmont at the Big A, and did not race again until her last-out effort in pace-pressing fashion under returning rider Tyler Gaffalione.
Beckman said he was pleased to see the dark bay make a strong return to the races.
“It’s always good when they come back off the layoff in good form like that, and we always knew she was a talented filly, no question with her 2-year-old form,” said Beckman. “It seems like she’s maintained [that form] and hopefully she’ll improve a little more off that.”
Carmel Coast worked back once since her latest win, covering a solo half-mile in 50.20 seconds on May 24 at Churchill.
“She had a nice, quiet work alone,” Beckman said. “She tends to do a lot in company, so her last couple works I’ve kept her by herself.”
Beckman added Carmel Coast has always shown mental maturity.
“Mentally, she’s always been professional since Day One. Physically, you can tell she’s grown a little bit, lengthened and beefed up a little bit from two-to-three,” Beckman said. “We liked her from Day One and we knew she was going to have a pretty strong debut, and she delivered.”
A $120,000 purchase at the 2024 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Select Yearling Sale, Carmel Coast is out of the Arch mare Carmel Beauty, a full-sister to Grade 1-winning millionaire turfer and Canadian Hall of Famer Arravale.
David Ingordo, West Point Thoroughbreds and Danbro Farms’ Paige Turner [post 4, Jose Ortiz] enters off her second to Carmel Coast with a stalking trip in the aforementioned Churchill optional claimer, and makes her second stakes outing after a game second to On Time Girl in the 6 1/2-furlong Fern Creek in November at Churchill.
The Army Mule bay landed second in her career bow in August here, and graduated at second asking in an October maiden sprint at Churchill ahead of the Fern Creek. The $350,000 OBS March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training purchase is out of the unraced Pioneerof the Nile mare Sophia Mia, making Paige Turner a half-sister to Grade 1-winner Speed Boat Beach.
Spendthrift Farm’s stakes-winner Goodall [post 3, Flavien Prat] will look to bounce back from a well-beaten fifth in the seven-furlong Grade 2 Eight Belles on May 1 at Churchill for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.
The $525,000 OBS Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training purchase debuted in January at Fair Grounds Race Course and graduated at second asking with a determined half-length score in February there ahead of an impressive stakes debut when smashing the six-furlong Purple Martin in March at Oaklawn Park by 4 1/2 lengths from just off the pace.
Goodall is out of the Malibu Moon mare Moon Over Mag Bay, a half-sister to the well-regarded Hall of Famer Bob Baffert trainee Cherokee Nation.
Completing the field are trainer Melanie Giddings’ twice-winning Oscar Bound [post 2, Shaun Bridgmohan], and last-out dominant maiden-winner Irish Jig [post 5, Carol Cedeno] for trainer Kelly Lynn Deiter.
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