Take Charge Brandi is a Starlet
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It was not an easy task, but Take Charge Brandi did just what was expected of her in the Starlet (G1) at Los Alamitos Race
Course. Fending off challengers on both sides, Take Charge Brandi held on to
post a narrow victory after leading every step of the way.
Breaking swiftly, Take Charge Brandi and rider Victor
Espinoza lost no time in establishing the early lead. With no one challenging
her early, “Brandi” was able to post comfortable splits of :23.64 and :47.68. Maybellene,
Feathered, and Don’t Blame Me took up positions just off the early leader with
Majestic Presence at the back of the first flight and Achiever’s Legacy and
Danette settling in at the rear of the field.
Winning jockey Victor Espinoza had nothing but praise for Take Charge Brandi, responding to post-race questions with, "This is an exceptional filly. To win the Breeders' Cup (Juvenile Fillies Nov. 1) and then go to Delta Downs and win (the G3 Delta Downs Princess Nov. 22) and then come back with this race is amazing. I was a little surprised at first that she made that easy a lead, but once she gets to that cruising speed, she's so quick it's hard for the others to keep up with her. I was just focused on my horse in the stretch. It seemed like when she felt them coming, she dug in and wasn't going to let them by."
In the far turn, jockey Gary Stevens asked Majestic Presence for more run, and as
the field spun for home, the Jerry Hollendorfer trainee loomed large on the
outside. All set down for the drive, it looked as though the race could go to
any one of four fillies as Maybellene, Feathered, and Majestic Presence all took
shots at Take Charge Brandi. Together the quartet put up three-quarters in
1:11.26 and the mile in 1:35.61.
Majestic Presence overtook Maybellene to move up into second, but her bid for the lead on the
outside was repelled by Take Charge Brandi. While “Brandi” was engaged with
Majestic Presence, jockey Mike Smith gave Feathered the signal to “go” from the
inside lane. After saving all the ground, Feathered
looked like she was going to go right on by the leader, but Take Charge Brandi
once again dug deep and turned away yet another challenge. Despite all the
pressure in the final 3/8ths, a gutsy and very determined "Brandi" ran the final 1/16th in :06.57
to stop the clock for the 1 1/16 event in 1:42.18, the winner by a half-length.
Feathered ran a huge race to grab second. Maybellene
re-rallied to finish a neck behind Feathered in third, and Majestic Presence stayed on for fourth after failing
to bypass Take Charge Brandi in the stretch. Achiever’s Legacy ran fifth,
followed by Danette and Don’t Blame Me.
Winning trainer D. Wayne Lukas attributed different tactics to Take Charge Brandi's recent success, explaining, "It's completely changed her since we decided just to leave her alone and let her run her race. We tried to get too cute with her during the summer and finally, I woke up and said I'll just leave her alone. We made that decision and it's worked. The whole purpose of coming here was to take the doubt out of it (the Eclipse Award for 2-year old filly) if we could and I didn't think we had to win to do that. I told (owner) Willis (Horton) that if we ran 1-2-3 we would still be very much in the picture."
Off at 6-5 odds, Take Charge Brandi paid $4.60/$2.80/$2.40 for
her win. Feathered returned $3.00/$2.60 off 2-1 odds, and a $2 show bet on
Maybellene (15-1) was worth $4.80. The $1 exacta paid a mere $5.70, the $1
trifecta returned $28.70 and the $1 superfecta was worth $98.60.
By Giant’s Causeway and out of the Seeking the Gold mare
Charming, Take Charge Brandi is a chestnut 2-year old filly bred by Charming
Syndicate. Owner Willis Horton purchased her for
$435,000 at the Keeneland 2013 September Yearling Sale and also owns and raced Will Take Charge, 2013 Eclipse Champion
Three-Year-Old Male who is a half-brother to Take Charge Brandi’s dam Charming. Today’s
Starlet victory was the filly’s third graded stakes win in a row and second
career grade one victory. She improved her overall record to 8: 4-1-0 for total
purse earnings of $1,620,126. She also likely cinched year-end honors with this win.
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