While the name Jaywalk pays homage to her sire, Cross Traffic, it’s more than evident that a talented 2-year-old filly who managed to score three straight wins in a little over two months doesn’t need to break any laws to make it to the wire first.
Outpacing her competition to pull away by 5 3/4 lengths in the $400,000 Frizette Stakes (G1) Oct. 7 at Belmont Park, Jaywalk had no trouble finding her lane.
Faced with the added pressure of a “Win and You’re In” guaranteed entry to the Tito’s Handmade Vodka Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) Nov. 2 at Churchill Downs, Jaywalk never turned a hair and was on the lead from the break.
Shifting to the rail to set the pace, Jaywalk was followed closely to her outside by Nonna Madeline and favorite Covfefe. Leading by more than a length on the backstretch, Jaywalk maintained her one-length lead to set fractions of :22.63, :45.65, and 1:09.71 through the first six furlongs.
Despite being bumped at the start by Nonna Madeline, Covfefe latched onto the leader at the six-furlong mark and dug in to challenge as the field entered the top of the stretch. Unable to deliver when asked for more in the deep stretch, Covfefe faded as Jaywalk pulled away with a massive kick. Final time for the one-mile test was 1:34.57 over a track rated fast.
“She wanted to go to the front,” said jockey Joel Rosario. “I thought there was a lot of speed on paper, and then John told me just let her break and let her run however she wanted. I just let her go ahead and be happy, and she really handled it.”
Brucia La Terra rallied from last in the seven-horse field to take second, followed by Cassies Dreamer, who recovered from bobbling at the break to take third.
“I told Joel, ‘The speed is there if you need it, but there’s plenty of speed in here. If you let her fall out of there, play it by ear,'” said trainer John Servis. “‘If the other horses go, sit behind them. She’ll do that, that’s not an issue with her. And if they don’t go, then put her where you’re comfortable.’
“I mean, they were running fast fractions, but they were doing it so easy. She’s a really nice filly. There were a couple of tough horses in here that have run better numbers, but you really don’t know how far they’re going to go and if they can sit on a hot pace like that and keep going.”
It was the third consecutive victory and first graded score for Jaywalk. She is owned in partnership by Cash is King and Leonard Green who sent the filly to Hidden Brook Florida Breaking Training after purchasing her at last year’s Keeneland September sale. The 2-year-old gray or roan filly entered off a 1 1/2-length win in the Aug. 22 White Clay Creek Stakes at Delaware Park. She broke her maiden by an impressive 7 1/2 lengths in a five-furlong sprint July 24 at Parx Racing. Her bankroll stands at $284,200.
“I want to see what kind of numbers she ran and how she comes out of this, and it’s obviously a huge effort for her,” Servis said. “I don’t want to see a huge improvement and wheel her right back in four weeks. … We’ll see how it shapes up.”
-edited from www.bloodhorse.com
