Big A roundup: Ballerina d’Oro earns Oaks bid, wins Gazelle

Ballerina d’Oro turned in a determined performance to capture Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Gazelle Stakes, a 1 1/8-mile test for 3-year-old fillies, to earn her place on the dance card for the Kentucky Oaks (G1) at Churchill Downs on May 2.

The filly owned by Rodeo Creek Racing, trained by five-time Eclipse Award winner Chad Brown and ridden by Dylan Davis added 100 Kentucky Oaks qualifying points to the 16.25 points she already earned. The point boost came thanks to a nose victory over gutsy New York-bred Early On. Deloraine was another 5 3/4 lengths in back.

Click here for Aqueduct entries and results.

?Early On added 50 Oaks points, Deloraine 25, Vanilla Sundae 15 and fifth-place Pure Beauty 10 from the six-horse field. Diriyah, who completed the order of finish, never was a factor in the outcome. Late Nite Call and Liam in the Dust were scratched.

Ballerina d’Oro began her career as a turf runner before Brown switched her to dirt for a runner-up finish in the Demoiselle (G2) at the 1 1/8-mile distance over the same in December. In the 130th running of the Gazelle, she rated patiently behind the modest splits of 24.10 and 48.36 seconds set by Vanilla Sundae on the track labeled fast.

Early On pressed to take command with three-quarters of amile going in 1:12.66. Once Vanilla Sky had thrown in the towel in the far turn, she made a bold move to the outside at the top of the lane and looked as though she would power on home by daylight. But Ballerina d’Oro, who was making her third start on the dirt, benefitted from Davis’s ability to gather her up and switch leads.

With Early On digging in gamely to her inside, the duo engaged in an intense battle in the final furlong before Ballerina d’Oro got her nose down with a final time of 1:50.67 on the fast track that was moistened by a steady afternoon shower.

The 3-5 favorite returned $3.40 on a $2 win wager. 

“It was a very strong performance,” Brown said. “She was a little green down the lane there hanging on her left lead and leaning in a little bit. Although she has done it occasionally in her races and in the mornings, she did it a little more than I thought she would today. Nevertheless, Dylan did a great job to finally get her straightened out. She caught that right lead very late in the race and finally persevered by a tough customer down on the inside. I’m appreciative of that.”

Ballerina d’Oro, bred in Kentucky by Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds, was making her second start off a three-month layoff when she missed training with a reported fever. In her first start of the year, she ran third in the Davona Dale (G2) at Gulfstream Park on March 1. In the Gazelle she was closer to the pace.

“She is a work in progress,” Brown said. “I think she got a good hard race under her belt. I’m not sure how much she got out of the Gulfstream race, and she missed some training. This race she’ll get a lot out of it, and hopefully she can build off of it. She will need to to be competitive in the Kentucky Oaks, but I think she has the talent to be.”

Crazy Mason goes from worst to 1st in Carter

Crazy Mason made the grade with a last-to-first charge under Manny Franco to capture the $300,000 Carter (G2), a seven-furlong sprint for older horses.

Trained by Gregg Sacco, the 4-year-old Coal Front colt was making his first attempt in graded company since a seventh-place finish in the 2024 Tampa Bay Derby (G3) while on the Kentucky Derby trail. Crazy Mason has raced exclusively in sprint events since returning to action in November at Aqueduct, where he was a close fourth after a six-month layoff. He entered the Carter off a pair of rallying sprint scores at the Big A against previous winners.

Will Sacco, assistant to his father, said he was thrilled to see Crazy Mason break through at the stakes level.

“We were most worried if he was good enough,” he said. “He was 0-for-6 in stakes prior to today. He was facing a good-quality field, the toughest group other than the Tampa Bay Derby, which produced Domestic Product. It was a class test today, and he just keeps stepping up. Manny rode an unbelievable race first time on him, and I’m just super happy for everyone involved. Hopefully, this will be a nice horse in the summertime.”

Crazy Mason, with Franco aboard for the first time, was away last of seven from the inside post and trailed the field with a ground-saving trip. Full Moon Madness set splits of 22.37 and 44.85 seconds under pressure from the quick-breaking Maximus Meridius with Quint’s Brew keeping close watch from third.

Surveillance launched a wide bid into the turn and was full of run to make it four across the track with Quint’s Brew emerging as the one to beat. Crazy Mason, fifth at the stretch call, circled widest of all and quickly overtook Surveillance, Full Moon Madness and Dilger with only streaking Quint’s Brew to catch. Quint’s Brew dug in gamely under Mychel Sanchez, but Crazy Mason’s momentum would not be denied a narrow neck victory. The final time was 1:21.95.

Franco, who recently took honors as leading rider at the Big A winter meet, said he was happy to see honest speed up front.

“I had pace in front of me, so I was happy where I was,” Franco said. “I just wanted him to give me the run that he always does, and he did, and he was there for me. ... I saved all the ground. I stayed most of the race on the rail, so when I got to the quarter pole, I was going to swing wide, but that's because it is what they told me to do, to be in the clear if I can. So I did, and the horse did it.” 

It was 2 1/2 lengths back to Dilger with Surveillance, Donegal Momentum, Maximus Meridius and Full Moon Madness rounding out the finish in that order. Sheriff Bianco scratched in favor of a start in Sunday’s $125,000 Haynesfield vs. fellow New York-breds.

Will Sacco said Crazy Mason, a maiden winner in July 2023 at Saratoga, could be pointed to the 6 1/2-furlong True North (G3) on June 7.

“We weren’t counting our chickens, but if he ran well today, we were looking at the True North up on Belmont day, 6 1/2 furlongs at Saratoga,” Sacco said. “He broke his maiden in his only start there, so he’s 1-for-1 at that track. I think after today, hopefully everything goes well before that and that will be his next start.”

Crazy Mason, a $27,500 purchase at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic eastern fall yearling sale, is out of graded stakes-placed Maria’s Mon mare Izshelegal, who is a half-sister to graded stakes-placed Comfort. His third dam is dual graded-stakes winner Katz Me If You Can, who captured the 2001 Genuine Risk Handicap (G2) at Belmont Park.

Bred in Kentucky, Crazy Mason banked $165,000 in victory while improving his record to 13: 5-2-2. He returned $12.60 for a $2 win bet.

Irish Maxima leads at every call in Distaff

Irish Maxima sustained her recent run of success, going to the front and leading at every point of call en route to a 1 1/4-length victory in the $175,000 Distaff (G3), a seven-furlong sprint for older fillies and mares.

Owned by Irish Three Racing, Irish Maxima got her fourth stakes win from her last six outings for trainer John Servis. She built on a two-length win in the listed Barbara Fritchie in February at Laurel Park that started her 4-year-old campaign.

“She’s gotten better with every race. The time off did her a world of good,” Servis said. “She was a little, I don’t want to say speed crazy but just very anxious. We put her away early in her 2-year-old year and freshened her up and she came back mentally stronger, bigger and happier. She hasn’t done anything wrong.”

In the 71st running of the Distaff, jockey Frankie Pennington led Irish Maxima from the inside post to the front, where she led the five-horse field through early fractions of 23.26 and 45.80 seconds over a main track labeled fast.

The Maximus Mischief filly maintained command in the stretch and never was threatened seriously by St. Benedicts Prep’s potential rally in the final furlong. Irish Maxima powering to the wire with a 1:22.92 final time.

“She broke a hair slow, but her third jump she took a hold of the bit and took the lead,” Pennington said. “She was settled after that, and after that it was just a waiting game. When I asked her, she took off with no problem.

St. Benedicts Prep, ridden by José Lezcano, outlasted Socially Selective by one length for runner-up status, marking the seventh consecutive time the Linda Rice trainee has finished in the money. Sea Dancer finished fourth.

Ocean Gateway completed the order of finish and was pulled up after the wire and provided a ride back in the equine ambulance. She was reported to have bled, according to the New York Racing Association’s veterinary department director. Royal Spa and All Class were scratched.

Servis said a potential next start could come May 4 in either the 6 1/2-furlong, $175,000 Vagrancy (G3) at Aqueduct or the seven-furlong, $1 million Derby City Distaff (G1) at Churchill Downs.

“The Kentucky race is going to be very salty. I don’t know if I’ll do that,” Servis said. “I may come back here and take it a step at a time, but with sprinting fillies, unless you are in the Breeders’ Cup, you don’t get to run for $1 million very often, so it might be worth taking a shot.”