by Peter Kleinhans, for The Red Mile
Lexington, KY — When your sire is Valley Victory and you’re the first foal out of the richest Standardbred of all time, the bar is set pretty high before you even set foot on the track.
In fact, Moni Maker’s baby had her picture up on the USTA website before she was a week old.
But as high as expectations might have been, Touch Of Moni has only exceeded them, and on Sunday night at The Red Mile she proved her mettle by grinding out a first-over victory in the $80,000 Lexington Breeders Classic Final, leaving two previously undefeated fillies in her wake.
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Nigel Soult Photo
Touch Of Moni prevails over Magenta Hall (6) and Centerfold Hall (9) in the Lexington Breeders Classic Final.
Centerfold Hall (Yannick Gingras), the only horse to have beaten Touch Of Moni in her brief career, and four-for-four going into Sunday night’s feature, set sail for the front end from post nine. Meanwhile, Magenta Hall, the other undefeated filly whose win in 1:552 at Springfield had raised eyebrows, took a seat in the two hole for Michel Lachance.
Touch Of Moni began from the rail for driver David Miller, sat relaxed off early fractions of :293 and :583, and tipped without cover passing the half.
By the time the field came to the top of the lane, Touch Of Moni was only a half length off of Centerfold Hall, and in a long stretch drive, she wore down that very quick daughter of Garland Lobell. But Magenta Hall tilted to the far outside after a ground-saving journey and rallied willingly, coming up a neck short to Touch Of Moni in a thrilling stretch drive. Centerfold Hall was a length and a half back in third.
Touch Of Moni, owned by the Moni Maker Stable and trained by Jimmy Takter, lowered her lifetime mark to 1:571 with the win, and pushed her bankroll to over $80,000.
Sunday night also featured the elimination event for next week’s Nadia Lobell, which carries an approximate purse of $220,000. The top seven finishers in the nine horse field qualified for the final, which will also include the top two eligible moneywinning fillies, Rainbow Blue and Kikikatie.
The lead changed hands several times early, with favorites Mambo Hall and Nu-Diamond Star both eventually making the top from posts eight and nine, but paying a stiff price.
By the time Mambo Hall made the front, she’d been used hard from the outside to a half in :543, and Nu-Diamond Star, who followed Mambo Hall in floating towards the top, didn’t clear to the lead until shortly before the three-quarters, which was clocked in 1:232.
By the time the field hit the top of the stretch, both favored fillies were tired. Nu-Diamond Star faded to finish fifth, while Mambo Hall tired badly and finished far back, not qualifying for the final.
The beneficiary of all the early action was the Mark Harder-trained Terri Hall, who rallied fiercely from eighth at the half to overpower this field by three and a half lengths in 1:513.
For Terri Hall, who had arrived from Montreal before the start of the Red Mile meet, the win was her second in the last three starts, and proved that the daughter of Blissful Hall is right there with the best three-year-old fillies in the nation.
Once David Miller tipped Terri Hall three wide at the top of the stretch, the outcome was never in doubt. DHB Six, a daughter of Grinfromeartoear, was making only her ninth lifetime start, but finished very well for second under Yannick Gingras, while longshot B J’s Sunset parlayed a ground-saving trip into a third place finish.
Daniel Plouffe of Quebec owns Terri Hall, who now proceeds into the main event next week.
In the Preferred Trot, Boom, known for his attempts to bottom out the field on the front end with fast fractions, succeeded with his strategy.
Yannick Gingras sent the fast, but occasionally unreliable son of Pine Chip, right to the top and held a large lead throughout, trotting a middle half in :56 flat and coasting home to the 1:541 win.
Upalazyriver, the heavy favorite, made a break at the top of the stretch, but didn’t appear to be within range of catching Boom anyway. Constable (Don Irvine, Jr.) put in his usual solid performance, finishing second, while Major Digby (Dan Shetler) rallied for the show.
Boom is owned by the highly-successful Adam Victor and Son Stable and is trained by Noel Daley.