Maple Forest Shows Way in Dearly Precious

Blue Heaven Farm’s Maple Forest stormed down the homestretch to post a length and a quarter victory in the $75,000 Dearly Precious Stakes as Perfect Officer wore down Varsity to take the $65,000 Wolf Hill Stakes by a neck on Sunday at Monmouth Park.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, Maple Forest covered the six furlongs over the fast main track in 1:09 1/5 and returned $5.40, $3.20 and $2.60 as the favorite in the field of six 3-year-old fillies.  Moonlit Malibu completed the $22.60 exacta and paid $5.60 and $3.  It was another length and a quarter back to Bold Affair, who paid $2.60 to show.

“The race went fast, finishing in 1:09 and one,” said winning jockey Joe Bravo.  “This filly did it handily.  She did it easily and could have a bright future.”

A daughter of Forestry from the American Chance mare Maple Syrple, Maple Forest sports a record of 3-3-0 from eight starts and earnings of $152,566.

A Michael Pino-trainee, Perfect Officer stepped the 5 ½ furlongs over good turf in 1:01 4/5 and returned $6.60, $2.80 and $2.60 in the Wolf Hill.  Varsity rounded out the $17.80 exacta and paid $3 and $2.80.  It was another two and three-quarter lengths back to Ju Jitsu Jax, who paid $6 to show.

“The plan wasn’t to be that far back,” said winning jockey Kendrick Carmouche.  “Once I was able to get him to the outside in the stretch I knew I was the winner because he has a pretty good kick.”

Sunday’s stakes score was the seventh in 23 starts for Perfect Officer, a 5-year-old gelding by Officer from the Perfect Vision mare Perfect Tradition.  He has earned $253,281.