Jacks or Better Farm’s homebred 2-year-old filly Awesome Feather won her second career start, the $100,000 JJ’s Dream Stakes, at Calder’s Summit of Speed on Saturday, making her perfect in two career starts. The Florida-bred filly won her debut at Calder in May.
Ridden by jockey Jeffrey Sanchez in both of her races for trainer Stanley Gold, Awesome Feather caught Because I Like It in deep stretch of the 5 ½ furlong race to defeat her rival by a half-length. Awesome Feather covered the distance in 1:06.50. It was another 5 ¼ lengths back to Cool Vixen in third place.
Awesome Feather earned $60,000 for the victory and returned $7.40, $4.00, and $3.40 at the mutuel windows.
Winning trainer quotes:
Stanley Gold — “She responded like you like to see. It was a lot more of a lesson than the first race. She got turned a little sideways (away from the gate) because of a chain reaction of horses bumping and lost a little position. She was up (on the pace), back, between horses, got dirt in her face—everything. Then she made a move up the inside—had the lead, lost it and got it back. We didn’t think she’d get that much education, so I’ll be a lot more confident for the next one. ($75,000 Desert Vixen Division – Florida Stallion Stakes, Aug. 7).”
Winning jockey’s quotes:
Jeffrey Sanchez – “She’s a very easy filly to ride. I ride her in the mornings and she’s just as relaxed in the afternoons as she is in the mornings. Coming down the lane, Edgar Prado pushed me out, so I switched inside. Coming up the rail, we battled but I knew my filly had it. She’s a very nice filly. I feel like the longer distance she runs, the more relaxed she will be.”
