Regal Engagement wins Black-Eyed Susan after
disqualification
It took a disqualification, but Mark Spitzer’s REGAL ENGAGEMENT (Cat Thief)
was able to pull off the victory in Friday’s $250,000
Black-Eyed Susan S. (G2) at
Pimlico. Smart N Pretty (Elusive Quality) jumped to the early lead to show the way through
fractions of :24 2/5, :48 4/5 and 1:13 1/5, with Saratoga Drive (Siphon [Brz])
closely in tow in second, but that one fell back in upper stretch, allowing Regal
Engagement to take her place.
Regal Engagement traveled three wide on the far turn to get within striking
distance of the leader, who clocked a mile in 1:37 2/5, but was never able to
overcome Smart N Pretty in the stretch. Smart N Pretty’s victory, which resulted
in a final time of 1:50 for 1 1/16 miles on the fast track, was short-lived, however, as an objection was
lodged by jockey Ramon Dominguez. A stewards’ inquiry into the stretch drive
soon followed, focusing on Regal
Engagement checking as Smart N Pretty drifted slightly to the outside, and
resulted in giving Regal Engagement her first graded stakes victory.
“She was tugging hard into the first turn, so I let her go,” Dominguez said.
“We had good position on the far turn and had a lot of horse coming into the
stretch. Down the lane, the six horse (Smart N Pretty) came into me. So I had to move her out so
we didn’t clip heels.”
“I was always aware of the horse to my outside and never thought I took the
path away from the other horse,” replied Norberto Arroyo, Jr., who piloted the
disqualified Smart N Pretty. “When we brushed, my horse switched leads and I
thought she straightened out then. I don’t think my filly should have been taken
down. His horse bumped mine.”
Leaving the gate at 9-1, Regal Engagement returned payouts of $12.40, $6.60
and $4.80 while keying exotics of $80.80 (exacta), $533.20 (trifecta) and
$1,401.30 for the 2-6-4-3 superfecta ($1). Smart N Pretty gave back $11 and
$5.60 for the place while Baghdaria (Royal Academy) held on to third another
two-lengths back to return $6 at 10-1. Gasia (Silver Deputy), She’s an Eleven
(In Excess [Ire]), Saratoga Drive and Crystal Current (A.P. Indy) rounded out
the order of finish. Red Cherries Spin (With Approval) was scratched from the
race.
“We’ll take it,” said winning trainer Thomas Bush. “I do feel good about it,
but I feel bad for the connections of the other filly. (Regal Engagement) ran
terrific. We were asking a lot of her in this spot and she came through for us.”
“I thought it could have gone either way,” said Dale Romans, who trains Smart
N Pretty. “I think (Smart N Pretty) deserved to win. I think she was by her when
she came out, but that’s horse racing.”
Bred in Kentucky by Helen Alexander and Stewart Armstrong, Regal Engagement is out of the Forty
Niner mare Puestera, who has also produced an unraced two-year-old filly named
Queen’s Full (Indian Charlie) and a 2006 filly by War Chant.
Regal Engagement comes off a runner-up finish in the Comely S. (G2) and
annexed the Busher S. over Aqueduct’s inner track the race prior. To date, the
three-year-old lass has a record of 7-3-2-0 and more than doubled her earnings
to $257,980. The winning filly was acquired at the 2004 Keeneland September
Yearling Sale for $80,000.