In 2019, Dr. Joel Politi reached the pinnacle of owning a Thoroughbred filly in America when Serengeti Empress carried her elite early speed to victory in the Kentucky Oaks (G1) at Churchill Downs. Now, seven years later, he hopes that he can reach those heights again with Stress Relief.
The 2-year-old daughter of Not This Time is quite different than his Kentucky Oaks and 2020 Ballerina Stakes (G1) winner, but so far in her first two starts she's shown signs of being the orthopedic surgeon's next star. She'll aim to become his first grade 1 winner since Serengeti Empress Sept. 5 when she faces seven promising rivals in the $300,000 Spinaway Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course.
"It's definitely why we all do this," Politi said. "You dream of having a nice horse, on whatever scale that is. As a graded stakes winner, she has fulfilled dreams just in that.
"I don't know how good she is really, you hope there's more in the tank we haven't seen. Whatever she winds up doing in the future, she's definitely been a treat so far."
A grade 1 triumph with Stress Relief would also be extra special given that she is a Politi homebred, unlike Serengeti Empress, who was a $70,000 purchase at the 2017 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Stress Relief is out of the Politi-raced multiple stakes-winning mare Littlestitious, who is a member of his 12-mare broodmare band.
Politi's racing program has an emphasis on the fillies, with the goal of breeding them after their racing career, and the potential Stress Relief showed in her upbringing at Taylor Made Farm made him second guess the decision to enter her in Book 1 of the 2025 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
"She was as good-looking a yearling as you could see, and we just decided to keep her and take our chances," Politi said.
However, the landscape would change between when Politi scratched her from the sale and when it was time to begin her training at the track. On April 1, his longtime trainer, Tom Amoss, retired and passed the barn on to his assistant, Kinnon LaRose.
Despite the change, his decision on who would train his stable never waivered. Amoss, a winner of 4,278 races, conveyed his utmost confidence in LaRose to his owner, and Politi's interactions with the former assistant in the previous six years made him believe he was the guy for the job.
"I've always liked Kinnon, and my conversations with him have always led me to believe that he had a high-level of horse intelligence," Politi said. "There's a lot of pressure to assume the stable of one of the all-time great trainers. Kinnon is now approximately five months into this story, and he has lived up to the expectations."
In addition to Stress Relief, sales-bought 2-year-old fillies Intraosseous and Virabhadrasana have made it a great summer for Politi with maiden wins at Saratoga. He also has three homebred juvenile colts who are progressing nicely to their debuts and a 4-year-old Texas-bred filly Modo, who has been sweeping up stakes in her home state and has Politi and LaRose hopeful she can tackle deeper waters.
Still, it has been Stress Relief who has provided the most excitement so far this year.
"When they started doing the half-mile breezes, (Stress Relief) showed some really good signs of life," Politi said. "I thought we had something pretty good, and then every race she's run the comments of the jockey have always been really encouraging."
Stress Relief debuted June 20 at Churchill Downs with a 5-length domination. Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. got out of the saddle and praised the filly for her intelligence and ability to listen to commands. Junior Alvarado then rode her in the Aug. 2 Adirondack Stakes (G3) and had the same praise as she raced just off the pace and kicked away down the lane for a 3 1/2-length win.
That ability to listen to commands offers a different experience for Politi than the one he had with Serengeti Empress, who's game was purely speed. He recalled one instance in which she returned from some time off for her first breeze as a 3-year-old at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, going what was supposed to be an easy 3 furlongs in :34, but doing so in hand.
"Serengeti Empress was always just fast. This filly is different in that she is just waiting for commands," Politi said. "She will go as fast as the rider wants her to go, and she goes as easy as they tell her to go. Serengeti needed the lead to win, and she proved that to us over and over in races where if she wasn't out on the lead, she just didn't do her best running. Whereas Stress Relief has shown in her first two starts that she is coachable.
"Although I would dream to have another horse as good as Serengeti, her Achilles' heel was she needed the lead. If she could have just sat and been patient, she probably would have won even more. I think the contrast is that Stress Relief, in two races, has just waited on her commands. I don't know how good she is, but that makes her more flexible in her running style."
Should that flexibility lead to a win Saturday, it could also lead to checking off one box that Serengeti Empress never did: a win in the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The Spinaway offers the winner an automatic, fees-paid berth to the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) Oct. 30 at Keeneland through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In.
Serengeti Empress finished seventh in her Juvenile Fillies attempt in 2018 before finishing third in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) and second in the 2020 Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (G1). As the breeder and owner of Stress Relief, Politi said a Breeders' Cup triumph would be incredibly rewarding for him and his family, LaRose as a first-year trainer, and the Taylor Made Farm team who raised her.
"There would be so many people so happy if she won, that would be great," Politi said. "As far as a personal goal, for fillies, it's the Oaks and Breeders' Cup. It would be great to win a Breeders' Cup."
Politi is hoping that a Spinaway win will cap what will already be an incredible weekend. The night before, he will walk his third-oldest of four daughters down the aisle for her wedding. Then, Saturday, after hosting a newlywed brunch, he will be able to host a watch party for the Spinaway and, hopefully, celebrate a milestone win with his closest friends and family who are in town for the wedding.
"It's not as good as being there, but I obviously wouldn't trade that for where I'm going to be," Politi said. "Having a watch party at my house with some of my best friends will be really fun."
