When opportunity knocked, Godolphin's highly versatile Antoinette surely answered.
For a while there were thoughts that the 3-year-old daughter of Hard Spun might run in the Alabama Stakes (G1). But then trainer Bill Mott and Godolphin USA president Jimmy Bell talked it out, and they came to the conclusion that the filly was already grade 1-placed on dirt and would be facing a tough customer in Swiss Skydiver in the Alabama. So a decision was made to run on turf in the $500,000 Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes for 3-year-old fillies on the Aug. 16 card at Saratoga Race Course.
Then jockey John Velazquez entered the mix.
Noting how Antoinette has a habit of staying close to the pace but failing to deliver a winning kick in the stretch, he looked at the past performances of her six rivals and saw how there was not much early speed among the group. Maybe, he figured, putting Antoinette on the lead might be the way to go in the 1 3/16-mile test.
In the end, the right race and correct tactics were selected as Antoinette opened a clear lead while moving onto the backstretch and then showed some determination in the final furlong as she withstood a bid by Paradise Farms and Parkland Thoroughbreds' Stunning Sky to prevail by a half-length.
"The way she ran today, I'd say maybe we run on turf (next), but the good thing about her is she (can run on turf or dirt)," Mott said.
The Saratoga Oaks was the eighth start for the homebred Antoinette and her fourth try on turf. With two wins on grass and a trio of third-place finishes in graded dirt stakes, she came into Sunday's stakes 12th on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks leaderboard and could start in the Sept. 4 stakes. Though Mott said he'll discuss future plans with Bell in the next few days, he did not seem that eager to tangle with both Swiss Skydiver and Gamine at Churchill Downs.
"I don't think so," he said about the Oaks. "I don't know if anybody is leaning in that direction now."
If Antoinette passes on the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1), that would move another of Mott's horses, Harvey's Lil Goil (30 points), who was third in the Alabama, into the 14th and final spot, pending other defections. Envoutante, who was fourth in the Alabama, is next on the list, also with 30 points.
Turf and the lead certainly seemed the right mix for Antoinette ($12) in the Saratoga Oaks as she set fractions of :48.87, 1:12.78, and 1:36.01 and still had enough speed left to fend off Stunning Sky, who was only a head behind her at the eighth pole, and cross the wire in 1:53.30 as the 5-1 fourth choice.
"There wasn't much speed in the race," Velazquez said. "I'd been taking this filly back every time she runs. She runs behind horses on dirt or grass and I think she's going to gallop, but when you let her go, she doesn't pass the horses. Today, we sent her to the lead and got her to relax, and she put up a good fight. I didn't have to take a hold of her today. She opened up on the horses, but she fought with the horses. I wasn't worried about the distance at all, I was worried about her putting her mind on running."
Out of the Elusive Quality mare Shuruq, the $483,750 earner is the mare's second foal and first winner.
Stunning Sky, who lost by a head in the Lake Placid Stakes (G2T), suffered another tough loss. The daughter of Declaration of War trained by Mike Maker was fourth in the early stages and seemed poised to go by Antoinette in the stretch but came up short.
Arindel's Key Biscayne, a Brethren filly, was 2 1/2 lengths back in third.
Allen Stable's Enola Gay, the 3-2 favorite, was third in midstretch but tired and finished fifth.
The Saratoga Oaks was created last year as the middle leg of the New York Racing Association's Turf Triple series but was the first of the three to be contested this year. Plans for the other two stakes in the series have not been finalized.
