Saratoga Springs, NY – Whilemena Rita A was a decisive first-over winner in the Sunday (Sept. 14) $18,000 feature at Saratoga Casino Hotel.
The Melissa Beckwith trainee had one victory in the Fillies and Mares Open to her credit when she came into Sunday’s tilt as the morning-line favorite. Whilemena Rita A wound up as the odds-on favorite in the feature for distaffers and proved more than up to the task. The 6-year-old daughter of Heston Blue Chip, who is in the midst of her first season of racing in the U.S., came first-over after a first half was paced in just :58.1. The resistance of longshot leader Dressed To Kill was futile as Whilemena Rita A and reinsman Brett Beckwith imposed their will, pacing through a third quarter in :27 before opening up an insurmountable lead and scoring by 1-3/4 lengths in 1:54.3.
Lady Saturn (driven by Brett Crawford) closed quickly to finish second at odds of 10-1 while Bobby Mcgee (Billy Dobson) earned the show spot in her Open debut.
For Whilemena Rita A, the win was her seventh of the year and second in Open company. The talented mare is owned in partnership by FAC Racing and trainer Melissa Beckwith.
Live racing continues on Monday (Sept. 14) at Saratoga with a matinee that begins at noon.