Bodacious Babe Earns First Stakes Victory in Margate

Panic Stable’s Bodacious Babe took control of the lead as the field turned for home in Monday’s $60,000 Margate at Gulfstream Park and continued on to a 3 1/4-length victory in the race for 3-year-old fillies.

Ridden by Nik Juarez, Bodacious Babe stalked long shot Dad’s Kiddo, the pacesetter, through a quarter-mile completed in :23.11 and a half-mile in :46.08 in the seven-furlong Margate. As the nine-horse field swung into the stretch, the Jane Cibelli-trained Bodacious Babe kicked into high gear and powered to the front.

Mo’ Green finished second and was followed under the wire by My Awesome Mom, who checked in 4 3/4 lengths behind the runner-up. Banree, the 8-5 favorite, was never a factor and finished last.

A daughter of Mineshaft, Bodacious Babe lost her last three starts, but Cibelli said she wasn’t down on the filly, who before today was a winner of two starts, a maiden race and an allowance event, both run at Monmouth Park.

“You have to throw out this filly’s last three races,” Cibelli said. “In her last, turf wasn’t her game. The race before that, a mile is just too far for her, and the race before at Monmouth, she was hit in the eye coming around the turn. She ducked completely to the right. [The eye injury] was so bad she had to go to the clinic. So, really, you just throw those three races out and she goes back to what she does best, sprinting.”

Cibelli said she had no immediate plans for the 9-2 Bodacious Babe, the second choice, who returned $11.40 and completed the distance in 1:27.76 over a fast track.