Lady Ivanka conquers the Spinaway

Sitting just behind dueling leaders, Lady Ivanka received a perfect setup that translated into a game victory in the Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes at Saratoga.

Separationofpowers rocketed out of post 1 intent on the lead, but Pure Silver quickly joined the fray to her outside and gained a short advantage. Lady Ivanka settled in a couple lengths behind them, and Maya Malibu, who reared up prior to loading then, was slow out of the gate, took up fourth. Longshot Obvious Two was the trailer.

With very little separating them, Pure Silver and Separationofpowers battled head-to-head down the entirety of the backstretch. Neither would give an inch, and the pace was grueling. The dueling duo put up the opening quarter in :22.36 and the half in :45.30.

Behind them, Lady Ivanka continued to bide her time, finally ranging up on her rivals three-wide exiting the far turn. Maya Malibu, on the other hand, got a nice ground-saving trip on the inside as the rail opened up at the top of the stretch.

Pure Silver and Separationofpowers were reluctant to quit, but to their outside and inside, Lady Ivanka and Maya Malibu were making the most of their duel. Maya Malibu tried her hardest on the inside, but Lady Ivanka had her measure, flashing under the wire the winner by 3/4-length.

Maya Malibu had to settle for third while Separationofpowers held on for third. Pure Silver had to settle for fourth, and Obvious Two, who was never involved, was fifth and last.

The winning time for the 7 furlong event for 2-year old fillies was 1:24.97.

"It was a tough test but we got it down. She ran a good race the race set up ran the way we expected, I was a little concerned about the inside horse, but we got it done," stated winning trainer Rudy Rodriguez. "I was not confident at all [turning for home] because I saw that the other horse was coming on the inside, and Javier is one of the best riders in the country, they opened the rail for him, and I was concerned, but thank God we held on. I was hoping that he would wait a little longer, but I'm not on top here, so I thought if he waited a little longer maybe we could wait for whatever they were going to do, but thank God it worked out."

"I believe so. I think she's very good, she's got a very good mind, she can see, like you see, she's just sitting there behind horses, she's been doing that in the morning all the time, so I think she can stretch out," Rodriguez replied when asked if Lady Ivanka could stretch out further.

Winning rider Irad Ortiz, Jr. confirmed how well things went. "I got a perfect trip," he said. "I broke out of there and just sat there and waited. We were clear on the turn and when I asked her she was there for me. She was ready. Rudy did a good job with her. Her last race was impressive and she did it in a good way. Now here we are in a Grade 1 and she did it."

As the third betting choice, Lady Ivanka paid $12.40, $5.40, and $3.60. Maya Malibu returned $7.70 and $4.90, and odds on favorite Separationofpowers returned $2.10. The $1 exacta paid $35.00, the $0.50 trifecta returned $37.12, and the $0.10 superfecta was worth $11.77.

Chad Brown, who saddled beaten favorite Separationofpowers lamented, "The post killed her. It was a bad draw and she got hounded the whole way. She did all the dirty work there and I'm proud of her she worked hard, but it's just not a good situation to be drawn inside of a real fast horse like Pure Silver [No. 4] and set it up for another horse [Lady Ivanka, No. 3]."

By Tiz Wonderful and out of the Officer mare Lady Leftennant, Lady Ivanka was bred by Scott Pierce in Oklahoma. The filly visited the auction ring three times before she was finally picked up for $80,000 by agent Kim Valerio. The newly minted grade 1 winner is owned in partnership by Michael Dubb, Bethlehem Stables LLC, Michael Imperio, and Susan Montanye. Lady Ivanka is a perfect 2-for-2 with earnings of $259,800.

When asked about the Breeders' Cup, trainer Rodriguez stated, "I don't know, I have to talk to the owners, and then make a plan and see what we have to do but it's very good to be in this position. We're just going to relax and enjoy this, and I'll talk to the owners."