Churchill Downs Stakes Recaps: Finite Dazzles in Rags to Riches, South Bend Emerges as Street Sense Winner

Oct 27, 2019

Finite posted her second straight daylight win with a commanding six-length win over Lady Glamour in Sunday’s seventh running of the $122,097 Rags to Riches Overnight Stakes on opening day of Churchill Downs’ 26-day Fall Meet.

The 2-year-old daughter of Munnings crushed Monomoy Girl’s 2017 stakes record of 1:36.29 by clocking one mile over a fast track in 1:35.53 under jockey Ricardo Santana Jr. Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen conditions the Winchell Thoroughbreds homebred, who is owned in partnership by Ron Winchell, Thomas J. Reiman, William Dickson and Deborah A. Easter.

Finite, sent to post as the 5-2 second betting choice in the field of seven 2-year-old fillies, tracked the right hip of even-money favorite Specially, who set swift early quarter-mile fractions of :22.87, :45.78 and 1:10.37. Finite put away Specially at the top of the stretch and quickly drew away down the 1,234-foot lane to dominate the competition. Lady Glamour was a clear second, six lengths ahead of Gone Glimmering who finished third, a half-length in front of Lucky Jingle. Curlinesque, Spotted Ghost and Specially completed the order of finish.

“She relaxed so comfortable for me today after breaking so well,” Santana said. “I got her in the perfect spot and she responded every step of the way to the finish. She’s a very nice filly and I think she can go longer.”

Finite paid $7.80, $4.20 and $4. Lady Glamour, a 20-1 longshot under Julie Burke, returned $14 and $7.80. Gone Glimmering, at odds of 14-1 with James Graham aboard, paid $7.40 to show.

After finishing second to Sweet Kisses and Mrs. Danvers in maiden special weights on dirt at Saratoga, Asmussen sent Finite to Kentucky Downs on Sept. 12 where she broke her maiden in a 6 ½-furlongs grass race by 4 ¼ lengths.

Sunday’s payday was worth $73,929 and Finite improved her record to 4-2-2-0—$187,929.

Next up for the chestnut filly will be the $300,000 Golden Rod (Grade II) at Churchill Downs on Saturday, Nov. 30.

“She definitely passed the test today stretching out in distance,” Asmussen said. “She’s a very quality filly and had a nice win at Kentucky Downs coming into this race. The Golden Rod is definitely the right race for her after this type of performance so it was encouraging to see her stretch out.”

By Munnings, Finite is a Kentucky-bred filly out of the two-time stakes-winning Tapit mare Remit. Remit broke her maiden for Winchell and Asmussen 10 years ago on Nov. 7, 2009 at Churchill Downs, winning a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight by 2 ¾ lengths.

Sunday’s one-turn race is named in honor of Derrick Smith and Michael Tabor’s 2007 Kentucky Oaks (GI) winner. Two years ago, Michael Dubb and Monomoy Stables’ Monomoy Girl cruised to a 6 ½-length score in the Rags to Riches prior to her triumph in the 2018 Kentucky Oaks.

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SOUTH BEND EMERGES AS STREET SENSE WINNER

Covered up behind the leaders along the rail for most of the one-mile race, 7-5 favorite South Bend found a clear path with a sixteenth of a mile to run and forged clear inside the final 50 yards to emerge as a one-length winner over Fighting Seabee in Sunday’s seventh running of the $123,664 Street Sense Overnight Stakes on opening day of Churchill Downs’ 26-day Fall Meet.

Julien Leparoux rode the 2-year-old for Kevin Plank’s Sagamore Farm and trainer Stan Hough. The Algorithms colt ran one mile in 1:35.56, just .01 behind McCraken’s 2016 stakes record (1:35.55).

Silver Prospector and Carpe Victoriam were fastest away from the gate and led the field of 10 2-year-olds through early splits of :22.87 and :46.24 with South Bend bottled up behind those two and to the inside of a tracking American Butterfly. Silver Prospector, who raced along the inside rail, was briefly headed by a three-wide American Butterfly midway around the turn as Carpe Victoriam began to drop back.

As a Silver Prospector battled on, South Bend was fourth with a furlong to run when an opening emerged. He was able to slip through and turn back late rallies by Fighting Seabee, who finished a half-length back of Silver Prospector, and Shotski, who was another three-quarters of a length behind the third-place finisher in fourth.

American Butterfly was fifth and was followed by Sprawl, Wheat King, Axiomo, Carpe Victoriam and 4-1 second betting choice Tap It to Win, who was through after six furlongs. Mr. Tip was scratched.

“I think he’s still figuring everything out at this stage and to be this talented is very exciting,” Leparoux said. “When he got an open spot late in the stretch he finally realized he needed to start running fast again to get through and he got up to win.”

South Bend banked $73,292 for the win and remained unbeaten in three starts. He defeated Answer In by a nose at Churchill Downs in his Sept. 14 debut and returned to beat Wheat King by a neck in an Oct. 5 first-level allowance over seven furlongs at Keeneland.

South Bend paid $4.80, $3.80 and $2.40. Fighting Seabee, 11-1 under Brian Hernandez Jr., returned $8.60 and $5.20. Silver Prospector, ridden by Ricardo Santana Jr. at odds of 5-1, paid $4 to show.

South Bend, out of the Old Trieste mare Sandra’s Rose, was bred in Kentucky by Highclere Inc.

“It’s always nice to have a horse show this much talent early in his career,” Hough said. “He hasn’t shown me anything yet that he can’t stretch out around two turns so the Kentucky Jockey Club at the end of the meet would make sense.”

The $300,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (Grade II), a 1 1/16-mile race for 2-year-olds at Churchill Downs, will be run on Saturday, Nov. 30. The Kentucky Jockey Club is part of the “Road to the Kentucky Derby” point series that will determine the field of 20 horses that will compete in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (GI) at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 2.

The Street Sense is named in honor of 2007 Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense who became the first horse to win the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (GI) as a 2-year-old and the Run for the Roses at age 3. He also was the first Champion Two-Year-Old Colt to win the Kentucky Derby since Spectacular Bid who won the Kentucky Derby in 1979.

RAGS TO RICHES STAKES QUOTES

Ricardo Santana Jr., jockey of FINITE (winner): “She relaxed so comfortable for me today after breaking so well. I got her in the perfect spot and she responded every step of the way to the finish. She’s a very nice filly and I think she can go longer.”

Steve Asmussen, trainer of FINITE (winner): “She definitely passed the test today stretching out in distance. She’s a very quality filly and had a nice win at Kentucky Downs coming into this race. The Golden Rod is definitely the right race for her after this type of performance so it was encouraging to see her stretch out.”

Larry Demeritte, trainer of LADY GLAMOUR (runner-up): “We’re very pleased with how our filly ran today. It was a great race.”

David Carroll, assistant trainer of SPECIALLY (seventh as even-money favorite): “She came back a little quickly in this race today in only three weeks. She trained really well out of that race but it was pretty quick to come back.”

STREET SENSE STAKES QUOTES

Julien Leparoux, jockey of SOUTH BEND (winner): “I think he’s still figuring everything out at this stage and to be this talented is very exciting. When he got an open spot late in the stretch he finally realized he needed to start running fast again to get through and he got up to win.”

Stan Hough, trainer of SOUTH BEND (winner): “It’s always nice to have a horse show this much talent early in his career. He hasn’t shown me anything yet that he can’t stretch out around two turns so the ($300,000) Kentucky Jockey Club (GII) at the end of the meet would make sense.”

Greg Geier, assistant trainer of FIGHTING SEABEE (runner-up): “It was a very nice effort from this horse. I thought he ran great to finish second. I think there were some nice horses in this race.”