Miss Ella holds off Fair Point's late charge in Franklin County
Jack Swain III’s Miss Ella held off a late charge from favored Fair Point by a neck to win the 20th running of the $100,000 Buffalo Trace Franklin County (G3) for fillies and mares before a Friday afternoon crowd of 18,363.
Trained by Graham Motion and ridden by Joel Rosario, Miss Ella covered the 5½ furlongs on a firm turf course in 1:04.52. It was the third stakes victory of the Fall Meet for Motion. Rosario recorded his second score in the Buffalo Trace Franklin County following Free as a Bird in 2014.
The two fillies had finished a head apart with Fair Point grabbing the victory in the Smart N Fancy Stakes at Saratoga on Aug. 28 in their first meeting.
Melaleuca raced through the first quarter-mile in :22.17 with Miss Ella racing in eighth and Fair Point 11th in the run down the backstretch.
Miss Ella began picking off horses going into the far turn, swung wide in the stretch and hit the front at midstretch in opening a daylight margin that was enough to hold off Fair Point.
The victory was worth $60,000 to Miss Ella and marked her second graded stakes victory at Keeneland. She won the Adena Springs Beaumont (G2) on dirt during the 2015 Spring Meet.
A 4-year-old Kentucky-bred daughter of Exchange Rate out of the Woodman mare Sweet Tune, Miss Ella boosted her earnings to $440,700 with a record of 13-5-2-1.
Miss Ella, a Keeneland sales graduate, returned $8.20, $4 and $3.40. Fair Point, ridden by Jose Ortiz, returned $3.60 and $3 with Smoke Signals finishing another 2¼ lengths back in third and paying $14 to show under James Graham.
Full Tap finished another three-quarters of a length back in fourth and was followed in order by Boom Bam Bing, Late Spring, Everything Lovely, Melaleuca, Scatter Gun, Touch of Bling, My Year Is a Day (FR) and Mississippi Delta.
Racing continues Saturday with a 10-race program beginning at 1:05 p.m. ET that is headlined by the 33rd running of the $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End (G1) for 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/8 miles on the turf. The QE II will go as the ninth race with a 5:30 p.m. post time.
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Today was College Scholarship Day, one of Keeneland’s most popular promotions. College students will receive free general admission with a valid student ID and a chance to win one of 10 college scholarships awarded after each of the day’s races.
Keeneland hosts College Scholarship Day in partnership with the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association. The program began in October 2002 and has distributed a total of $292,000 at Keeneland.
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On Saturday, Keeneland will offer a $350,000 Guaranteed Late Pick 4 on Races 7-10, including the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End (G1).
The Pick 6 carryover for tomorrow is $15,991.42.
Source: Keeneland Association