Saratoga: Idiomatic scores gate-to-wire upset in Personal Ensign

Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Front-running Idiomatic had everything go her way, from comfortable fractions to sloppy track conditions, and she capitalized for a four-length victory in the Grade 1, $500,000 Personal Ensign Stakes on Friday at Saratoga.

It was the sixth victory in seven decisions this season for the 4-year-old bay daughter of Curlin. But it represented her first Grade 1 score and one that left the division in search of a leader. Secret Oath placed second, a neck ahead of heavily favored Nest. Neither of those two ever threatened the commanding winner.

“It shows that she can definitely compete with the best in the division. It was a big win. I think she’s right there with these other top fillies and mares,” said trainer Brad Cox. “The division is definitely not decided. It’s wide open right now.”

Questions abounded concerning Idiomatic’s quality before this. Of the Juddmonte homebred’s six wins in nine lifetime starts, four had come on Turfway Park’s synthetic surface. The 1 1/8-mile Personal Ensign marked her first Grade 1 attempt and her first real acid test.

“I always had confidence she would run on the dirt even when she started running on the synthetic,” said Cox, adding, “Her works on the dirt have been really good all spring and into the summer. That gave us a lot of confidence.”

Another huge issue revolved around whether she belonged in the upper echelon. She was soundly beaten, by 5 1/2 lengths, in the Ruffian (G2) at Belmont Park. She rebounded to take the June 3 Shawnee (G3) at Churchill Downs but turned the July 8 Delaware Handicap into a rather wild adventure for jockey Florent Geroux. She stumbled so badly at the start that Cox said, “Florent was lucky to stay on.” Once Geroux and his mount recovered, they spurted to the front and bested Classy Edition by a head.

Idiomatic was sent off as the third choice in the Personal Ensign at 4-1. She paid $10, $5.20 and $2.80 and splashed home in 1:49.12. Malloy, Clairiere and Sixtythreecaliber rounded out the field of six.

“I wouldn’t say she was a forgotten-about horse coming in,” said Garrett O’Rourke, general manager for Juddmonte USA. “Good handicappers were watching her thinking, ‘Wow, she’s starting to round into form.’ “

Perhaps no one anticipated that Idiomatic would break from the rail and be allowed to roll on the lead so comfortably, taking the compact field through the opening quarter in 24.53 seconds, the half in 48.84 seconds and three-quarters in 1:12.61.

“I thought as long as she got away well…We couldn’t stumble or stub our toe today,” said Cox. “We needed to get away well and establish our position early. Florent did that and it worked out well.”

Javier Castellano, who rode freshened Secret Oath in place of injured Luis Saez, provided his game mount with a ground-saving trip. But that was not nearly good enough. “I thought someone was going to put pressure, but they didn’t,” Castellano said.

Pace made this race. “The winner is a quality mare and was setting down pretty easy fractions,” said Todd Pletcher, who trains Nest.

Nest had been super impressive in her previous outing, when she returned from an eight-month layoff to repel multiple Grade 1 winner Clairiere by 2 ¼ lengths in the Shuvee (G2) for her third win in as many starts at Saratoga.

That was on a fast track, however. This one, pounded by afternoon rain, appeared to compromise her.

“The one thing it didn’t seem she had on this gooey going was that acceleration at the top of the stretch,” Pletcher noted. “Usually, she has that ability to quicken. On this surface, she just couldn’t do that.”

It is possible that Idiomatic and Nest, the reigning champion 3-year-old filly, will meet again in the Spinster Stakes on Oct. 8 at Keeneland. Juddmonte sponsors that race so it might well want to be represented there by Idiomatic. Pletcher also mentioned the Spinster as a potential target for Nest.

The division will almost surely boil down to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff on Nov. 4 at Santa Anita. It is highly unlikely that the going will be gooey that day.

“Maybe the conditions of the race might be different on the big day,” O’Rourke acknowledged. “But she proved she belongs.”