by Mike Sardella, for Saratoga Casino Hotel
Saratoga, NY — Thursday afternoon (Feb. 22) brought about the first installment of the Fillies and Mares Open for the 2018 season at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Seven distaffers squared off for a purse of $12,000 through the snowflakes that fell throughout the matinee card.
Melissa Simser-Iovino photo
Tempus Seelster captures the Saratoga feature on Thursday afternoon.
The Heidi Rohr-trained Tempus Seelster (Big Jim) was the even-money favorite in the feature and driver Billy Dobson perched the 5-year-old in the pocket spot in the early going.
Longshot Mydelight Bluechip (Ben Mcneil) cut the mile at odds of 17-1 but when Tempus Seelster popped the pocket after pacing five-eighths of a mile tracking the upset-minded leader, she meant business.
Tempus Seelster cruised to the Open victory, stopping the timer in 1:56.1 over a track labeled ‘good.’ Mydelight Bluechip held second while Media Queen N (Mark Beckwith) earned the show spot.
The exacta and triple in the race, led by the even money favorite, paid $35.60 and $114, respectively.
Live racing resumes on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee beginning at 12:15 p.m.