Awesomemundo defeated Love and Pride to win the Allaire DuPont Distaff Stakes
Trained by Bob Baffert for his wife Jill Baffert, Awesomemundo posted an exciting victory in the Grade 3, $100,000 Allaire DuPont Distaff Stakes. Despite a bad start, Awesomemundo still got up and dulled out Love and Pride to win at the Pimlico Race Course
on 19 May, 2012.
Ridden by jockey Mike Smith, Awesomemundo at three-quarters of a mile was settled at sixth in a field of 8 runners, as Smith angled the filly four-wide rounding off the bend entering into the stretch.
John Velazquez was aboard Love and Pride, and the pair ran in front in the stretch, and at one point looked like running away with the race, but Awesomemundo had a little more left in her, as she let go of the bad start and engaged in a spirited duel with,
Love and Pride.
The two horses were running close to each other and not giving an inch away, as the duel turned intense, the two horses bumped with each other mid stretch, but Awesomemundo prevailed and downed a magnificent victory, covering the 1 1/16 mile distance in
1 minute and 44.70 seconds.
Velazquez after the race filed an objection regarding the bumping incidence, but it was later rejected by the stewards.
“They (Awesomeundo and Love and Pride) came together a little bit because she was gawking around at the crowd, but it wasn’t anything. We had a little trouble leaving, but she proved she’s very talented. She has a beautiful long kick," Smith said."
Bob Baffert knew the way Awesomemundo runs, and he gave specific instructions to Mike Smith to keep the filly back and let her loose when the time comes.
“There was a lot more pressure on Mike with this filly because she’s a house horse," Baffert joked. "She wasn’t in the picture and Jill said to me, “why is she way back there?’ I said, ‘that’s the way she runs.’ I told Mike, ‘she runs like Zenyatta a little
bit, but don’t count on her to make up that much ground.’”
The Kentucky bred daughter of Awesome Again was coming off a victory in an allowance/optional claimer at Pimlico.
Tags: