Colonial: Moira takes Beverly D.; Trikari wins Secretariat

In the final stages of Sunday's Grade 2, $500,000 Beverly D. Stakes at Colonial Downs, Moira laid her heart on the line to beat out the defending champion Fev Rover by a head.

Owned by Lanni Bloodstock, Madaket Stables and SF Racing, trained by Kevin Attard and with Jose Ortiz in the irons, Moria covered the 1 3/16 miles distance over firm turf in 1:54.80.

Click here for Colonial Downs entries and results.

“It’s always nerve wracking when you hook Fev Rover,” Attard said. “She’s a great horse, and Mark (trainer Casse) has done a great job with her. Last year at Woodbine, we hooked her a couple times on soft turf. I think Fev Rover gets the edge over us on softer ground, but Moira prefers the harder turf.

“We contemplated not coming here because of tropical storm Debby, but we rolled the dice. I’ve never been (to Colonial Downs), but I had heard great things about this turf course that it drains well. I know Woodbine has got a great turf course, but Colonial is probably one of the best in North America as well.”

Similar to how she won the 2023 Beverly D., Fev Rover took the early advantage and led the field of five fillies and mares through a quick opening fraction of 23.56 seconds before slowing the pace down and clocking a half-mile at 49.22 seconds. Moira tracked comfortably in third.

Libban stalked the leader and made her move ahead of the far turn, forcing Fev Rover to quicken. Moira followed suit, passing Libban in the turn. With the long stretch ahead of them, Moira hounded Fev Rover before finally getting even in the final strides to beat her foe across the finish line, evening their head-to-head rivalry at 3-3.

Finishing 1 3/4 lengths behind the top pair, Neecie Marie rolled late to beat out Nadette for third.

Moira returned $3.40, $2.40, and $2.10.

With the win in the Beverly D, the five-year-old earned a spot in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf on Nov. 2 at Del Mar. Before that Attard may race her 1 1/4 miles Sept. 14 at Woodbine.

“We’ve got the E. P. Taylor (G1) at home,” Attard said. “I think that's a race we are going to take into consideration, and that would take us right into the Breeders’ Cup.”

Moira improved her record to 18: 6-5-2 and has purse earnings totaling $1,823,999.

Trikari repels Brilliant Berti in Secretariat

Trikari dominated the field of 3-year-olds, holding off the post-time favorite Brilliant Berti’s late kick to win the $500,000 Secretariat (G2) by 2 1/4 lengths over a firm turf course. Trained by Graham Motion and ridden by John Velazquez, Trikari covered the one-mile distance in 1:34.92.

“Johnny was super impressed with his turn of foot,” winning trainer Graham Motion said. “Down the backside he was so relaxed, and when he asked him, he just took off. I think as (Trikari) matures now and starts to run against older horses, he’s going to have to step up his game against older horses, I think (one mile) is really going to be his game.

General Ledger took the lead, rolling through honest, opening fractions of 24.24 and 48.26 seconds. Trikari tracked comfortably in fourth, and Brilliant Berti settled near the back on the rail.

Trikari advanced in the final turn to take the lead at the top of the stretch. With Brilliant Berti following, Trikari proved to be too much.

In a Jam finished third and General Ledger hung on for fourth.

The son of 2017 Secretariat winner Oscar Performance who, like Trikari, also was owned by Amerman Racing, boasts three graded-stakes wins on his record of 8: 5-1-1.

“I’ve been trying not to think about the Breeders’ Cup, because it’s tough for 3-year-olds,” Motion said of what might be next for Trikari. “A race at Keeneland, maybe against older horses, something along those lines, is something we will have to consider.”

With his win in the Secretariat, Trikari improved his purse earnings to $1,303,530.