Repole Stable's Always Shopping, a graded stakes-winning 3-year-old filly in 2019, is now a graded stakes-winning turf marathoner as a 5-year-old.
The Awesome Again mare showed her versatility in the $125,000 La Prevoyante Stakes (G3T) at Gulfstream Park Jan. 23, scoring an emphatic three-length win over Delta's Kingdom. This followed a score in the 1 3/16-mile Via Borghese Stakes last month at Gulfstream and improved her local course record to 3-for-4.
Mired in a slump after winning the Gazelle Stakes (G3) on dirt at Aqueduct Racetrack in April 2019, Always Shopping reversed her form last summer and fall when trainer Todd Pletcher added blinkers and moved her to the turf. She won the Monroe Stakes at Gulfstream Sept. 7 and just missed when second in Keeneland's Oct. 18 Rood and Riddle Dowager Stakes (G3T), beaten by a head by Blame Debbie, in the race preceding the Dec. 19 Via Borghese.
"Blinkers. Back to turf. Todd does an amazing job," said owner Mike Repole of Repole Stable. "I kind of like to bust his chops once in a while and ask him why it took so long to put blinkers. She's figured it out and (jockey) Irad (Ortiz Jr.) has done an amazing job with her, too."
Always Shopping was backed to even-money favoritism in the La Prevoyante, and she was always poised to take Saturday's race. Ortiz had her under a snug hold when inside, just behind early leaders Aunt Hattie and Court Return, and once she was cut loose leaving the last of three turns, the race was essentially over. She completed 1 1/2 miles on firm turf in 2:25.38, following splits of :47.63,1:12.83, and 1:38.11.
"I got a perfect trip. I can't complain," said Ortiz. "The filly put me in a good position. I tried to settle down and she settled down and she came back to me, and whenever I asked her she responded very well."
Always Shopping has now won five of 14 races and $475,105.
Runner-up Delta's Kingdom rallied from seventh to grab second, 1 1/4 lengths ahead of wide-rallying third-place finisher Irony of Reality, a 50-1 longshot.
A homebred for Repole Stable, Always Shopping ($4) is out of the stakes-winning More Than Ready mare Stopshoppingmaria. Her dam's lone stakes victory came in the Ladies Turf Sprint Stakes at Gulfstream in 2012, though she also placed as a 2-year-old in the 2011 Frizette Stakes (G1) on dirt and the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G2T), both at a mile.
Stopshoppingmaria is the dam of two winners, both at the stakes level. Besides Always Shopping, her produce includes Mo Shopping (Uncle Mo ), who captured the Light Hearted Stakes at Delaware Park in 2018 and also was a distant third that year in the Delaware Oaks (G3).
The mare, returned to the United Stakes in 2019 after she was sent to Australia, also has an active 3-year-old filly in Momaria (Uncle Mo), fourth in her debut at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots Jan. 1, an unnamed Medaglia d'Oro 2-year-old colt, and a Justify yearling colt.
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