Include Betty Rolls From Last-to-First in Remington Park Oaks

Rolling from last in a field of six, Include Betty made her rally work in taking down the $200,000 Remington Park Oaks on Sunday. The Oaks was biggest of the undercard stakes races on Oklahoma Derby Day.

Owned by the Midway, Ky. partnership of Brereton C. Jones and Tim Thornton, Include Betty is trained by Tom Proctor. She won the Grade 1-$300,000 Mother Goose Stakes at Belmont Park in June and has been ridden throughout the summer by Drayden Van Dyke. He rallied his filly from over eight lengths behind after a quarter-mile, gaining the advantage early in the stretch. Once up front, Include Betty moved inward slightly in the stretch and had to survive a claim of interference filed by Jareth Loveberry the jockey of third-place finisher Harlan’s Romance.

“She started to lug in with me at the eighth-pole and she has a tendency to do that all the time,” Van Dyke explained. “Luckily, we didn’t bother the other horse too much to cause anything big. She ran well and I’m very happy.

“When I hit the front too early, and she did this in the Mother Goose, she wants to start pulling up,” Van Dyke continued. “Her ears pop up and she stops running. I really didn’t want to hit her but I had to and when I put my stick to her she went down to the left a little bit but nothing bad.”

Van Dyke didn’t allow Include Betty to fall too far back as Tosha Talifero set an easy pace early, going :24.49 seconds for the first quarter-mile; :49.12 for the half-mile and 1:14.10 for three-quarters of a mile. Include Betty kept close contact due to the slow, early going in order to have a chance to catch the frontrunners.

Heavily favored at 1-5 odds in the wagering, Include Betty paid $2.60 to win, $2.10 to place and $2.10 to show. Sweet Opportunity gained late in the stretch but settled for second while paying $3.80 to place and $2.60 to show. Harlan’s Romance was third and paid $4.40 to show.

Include Betty is by Include from the Eltish mare Betty’s Solutions. She was bred in Kentucky by Lavin Bloodstock & Brereton C. Jones. Include Betty won her fifth career race from 13 attempts, making $120,000 for the effort. Her overall bankroll now stands at $711,030.

Source: Remington Park

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