I Spent It Earns Saratoga Special Victory

Racing

I Spent It was the talk of the town after his Saratoga Special victory. (Photos courtesy of NYRA/Coglinese Photos)

I Spent It made a bold move, squeezing through a tight hole in the stretch to take home the winner’s share of the $200,000 Saratoga Special at Saratoga on Sunday.

Javier Castellano had the Super Saver colt perfectly positioned around the third spot during the early running of the race with Nonna’s Boy setting solid fractions in the lead.

As the field ran down the stretch in the 6 1/2 furlong race, there was a four-way battle for the lead with I Spent It sitting right behind the pack. Castellano bid his time and waited for a hole on the rail to open before asking the colt to make his move. While the hole looked tight, I Spent It willingly went through and took off again to win by open lengths. Mr. Z also broke from the pack and tried to chase down I Spent It but it wasn’t meant to be with the leader winning by open lengths.

"There was nowhere to go; [along the rail] was the only way he had, so I took a shot. The way he did it was brilliant. It was an impressive run; I think he's the real deal. He's a young horse and he's never been here before. And driving him home, he went just through and opened up. Not a lot of horses can do that," Castellano said.

W V Jetsetter was in a photo for third behind the two with Cleveland Sound finishing fourth. I Spent It went off at odds of 5/2 and paid $7.80 to win.

"I don't want to trade places with anybody. It's one step at a time, but, so far, so good. Obviously there's been no conversation about it, but I [am] hoping to wait for the Champagne [Grade 1, $500,000, October 4, Belmont Park], but that's not my decision to make," said trainer Tony Dutrow.

I Spent It was bred by Dixiana Farms and sold for $65,000 in October of his yearling year before coming back to the auction ring as a 2-year-old and bringing $600,000. Owned by Alex and JoAnn Lieblong and trained by Tony Dutrow, I Spent It comes from the family of Zavata, who won the 2002 Saratoga Special, in addition to Haskell Invitational winner Dixie Union.

In the co-feature race of the day, champion racehorse Bernardini scored a sire exacta when his daughters Cavorting and Angela Renee finished 1-2, respectively, in the $200,000 Adirondack Stakes.

CAVORTING WINNING THE ADIRONDACK


Cavorting dropped to midpack after the break but it didn’t last long as she started moving as the field started into the far turn and making a big move in the turn. Vivian Da Bling tried to hold on to the lead in the stretch but Cavorting blew past her before getting into a brief battle with Angela Renee. Cavorting pulled away to win the 6 ½ furlong race by 1 ¾ lengths in a time of 1:16.49.

"We had a lot of confidence because she's trained very well,” said trainer Kiaran McLaughlin after the race. “She's a special filly. She ran 11 weeks after she came to us and won by 11 [lengths]. Usually our horses improve [in their] second start. She had a perfect trip; [jockey] Irad [Ortiz, Jr.] rode a great race. We wanted to try to keep her face clean, and it worked out very well. She's a very talented filly."

Trained by McLaughlin, Cavorting is owned by Stonestreet Stables and was bought for $360,000 as a weanling in 2012. Cavorting is out of Grade 2 winner Promenade Girl and is from the family of Dance Colony, who also won the Adirondack Stakes.

McLaughlin said Cavorting’s next start will probably be in the Frizette on October 4 with the main goal being the Breeders’ Cup later in the fall.

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