Alpine Princess wins Untapable, gaining Ky. Oaks points

Fighting through and winning the early battle for positioning in and out of the first turn, Alpine Princess wired five fillies in Saturday’s $100,000 Untapable at Fair Grounds.

Though Alpine Princess’ lead seemed insurmountable, stablemate West Omaha never quit through the stretch to finish two lengths back at the wire, securing the Brad Cox-trained exacta. Alpine Princess covered the 1 mile, 70 yards in 1:43.08 to earn 10 points toward a post in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks. West Omaha collected five Oaks points.

Breaking from the rail and brushing an outer foe, Alpine Princess found herself in the rear at the outset, but her jockey Florent Geroux urged her through the encroaching outside fillies unscathed and into command of the field with first-time router Legadema in chase mode at her tail. After scrambling through the first turn three wide, West Omaha took a tracking position in fourth.

Traveling comfortably in 24.27 and 48.29 seconds, Alpine Princess grew bold, adding distance to her lead at every call, as Legadema began to fade turning for home. West Omaha and Sistina Chapel were coming on, but the latter could not match strides and crossed the wire three lengths behind West Omaha in third for trainer Ken McPeek, earning three Oaks points. Legadema held on for fourth and two points. Band of Gold managed fifth and one point.

Sent off as the 8-5 favorite, Alpine Princess returned $5.40, $3.00, $2.40. West Omaha paid $3.40, 2.40. Sistina Chapel offered $3.40 to show.

"It wasn't my plan to go to the lead,” Geroux said. “But she broke well and I was going to get squeezed pretty hard leaving there, so I just took the best option and that was to let my filly run and not take a very strong hold going into the first turn. I had to give her a couple of reminders right at the end. She was getting a little lost the last furlong. She's a very honest filly. We've liked her from the beginning. I don't see many fillies on this circuit right now who blow my mind. We know the route to take (toward the Kentucky Oaks)."

Alpine Princess’s first stakes victory ratcheted her career earnings up $210,810 to match her 5: 3-0-1 record.

Last year’s Untapable winner, Pretty Mischievous, would go on to win the Rachel Alexandra (G2) and finish second in the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) en route to an eventual score in Kentucky Oaks 149.

The road to the Kentucky Oaks through Fair Grounds picks back up on Jan. 20 with the Silverbulletday Stakes, followed by the Rachel Alexandra (G2) on Feb. 17 and the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) on March 23.