Excellent Truth Outduels She Feels Pretty to Win Diana

The $485,000 Diana Stakes (G1T) drew some of the best that the filly and mare turf division has to offer July 12, and down the stretch it was Excellent Truth (IRE) and She Feels Pretty who were putting on a show for the Saratoga Race Course crowd. As the grandstand roared, it was Excellent Truth who outlasted her four-time grade 1-winning rival in the final strides for a narrow head victory, giving trainer Chad Brown a historic 10th victory in the 1 1/8-mile contest. Additionally, it was his fourth Diana triumph in a row and a ninth in the last 10 years. In the winner's circle, Brown placed the praise on his former mentor and two-time Diana winner, Bobby Frankel. "It means a lot. A lot of different horses have done it; many of the same team members, though," Brown said of the achievement. "(Frankel) taught me so much, and I think about him on days like this. A big part of it is him, and his legacy lives on. It's his system we're using." That system helped transition a group 3-winning and group 1-placed filly in Europe to a grade 1 winner in the United States. The move was facilitated by John Stewart of Resolute Racing, who, in search of European fillies that could handle a soft turf course, spent $10 million bolstering his stable. "Last year, all my fillies (favored) hard turf. When you get a storm, they just can't run," Stewart said. "I went (to Europe) specifically looking for horses that would handle these types of conditions, and I think that little extra was the difference maker for her." The early morning weather forecast certainly brought a smile to Stewart's face as a heavy storm dampened the Mellon Turf Course, which was a change in venue from the originally scheduled inner turf course because of the rain. By race time, the course was officially rated good. The longer 1 1/8-mile distance proved to be right up the daughter of Cotai Glory (GB)'s alley following runner-up efforts in her first two American starts: the 1 1/16-mile Jenny Wiley Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland in April and the one-mile Just a Game Stakes (G1T) at Saratoga June 6. Brown said he had picked those spots to keep her in grade 1 company even though the distances were not ideal. Both he and jockey Flavien Prat also believed she had sat too far back in those races and planned to be more involved Saturday. "We felt in her last couple races, as Flavien got to know her and I got to know her, she didn't have that electric turn of foot that maybe we thought was under the hood," Brown said. "When we really turned her loose in a race, she took a few strides to get going. A bit more of a strong, steady run she has." Prat got the perfect position, stalking just behind Jenny Wiley winner Choisya (GB) through fractions of :23.78, :48.52, and 1:12.61. Prat pushed forward at the quarter pole just as She Feels Pretty and John Velazquez rallied to her outside. "Turning for home, (She Feels Pretty) took the lead on me, just outran me going into the stretch," Prat said. "I just felt like I had more, that she wasn't done." Prat found himself in tight quarters at the eighth pole as She Feels Pretty took command, but Excellent Truth dug in to fight back for a head victory in 1:47.37, paying $8 to win. Just a Game winner Dynamic Pricing (IRE)—another Brown trainee—finished third 4 1/2 lengths behind. "It's very rewarding to win today," Prat said, adding that he found the 5-year-old mare's previous defeats frustrating. "I'm very happy for (Stewart). He's invested a lot and its great to see him in the winner's circle." "It's very validating for the first lot we purchased to have a grade 1 winner with Chad at Saratoga," Stewart said. "This is exactly what we wanted when we did this." Bred in Ireland by Sandra Russell, Excellent Truth is the second top-level winner for Cotai Glory. Out of the Teofilo mare Moment of Truth, Stewart purchased the mare for $1,690,785 out of the 2024 Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale. She now holds a record of 5-5-1 in 14 starts and earnings of $677,898. As for She Feels Pretty, who was spotting the winner 4 pounds, she received no stain on her reputation with her gutsy runner-up effort. Velazquez said he felt the ground was a bit softer than Lael Stables' daughter of Karakontie (JPN) prefers. "Once I didn't pass them the way I thought she would pass—she just put a head in front—I was in trouble then," the Hall of Fame rider said. "She was going really well until the point I put the head in front and she kind of hung a little bit." Trainer Cherie DeVaux was also proud of the effort. "She tried. It's hard when it's a small field like that and there's not a lot of pace," DeVaux said. "The winner was ahead of us the whole time. She ran a great race and very valiant. It's hard to be disappointed in a filly that does that. It was a solid effort and I'm really proud of her."