It was going to be a tall order for any horse to beat Groupie Doll in the Grade II $400,000 Presque Isle Masters Stakes on Monday night. After all, Groupie Doll, the reigning female sprint champion in the US, was going to be making her second start off a long layoff, after running third in the Grade III Gardenia Stakes. All indications were she simply needed to get that race in her to get back in top form, and the Masters Stakes was hers to win. Win she did, but Maryland-bred Purely Hot didn’t make it easy.
From low claimer to graded-stakes contender
Starting this season with a win in a $4,000 claiming race at Penn National, Purely Hot has had the kind of results all season that make owners happy and put money in the bank, winning six of eight including the Satin and Lace Stakes at Presque Isle, and never finishing out of the money. She was on a five-race winning streak prior to Monday night, but still, it was a stretch to think she’d be able to give the 2012 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint champion any trouble in the Masters Stakes.
Nothing but wins on the Presque Isle surface
She did have one thing going for her, however, in that in six starts on the Presque Isle Tapeta surface, she had never been beaten. Breaking from the gate as a 10-1 shot under jockey Harry Vega, Purely Hot settled in to lead the second flight of horses, as Winning Image and Toto Cor dueled on the front end. Rounding the turn in the 6 ½ furlong contest, with Groupie Doll looming to her outside, she moved past the leaders turning for home and then battled to the wire, with Groupie Doll just getting by in the closing strides.
The 2023 Preakness Stakes is coming up Saturday, May 20 at Pimlico! It is one of the most eagerly-awaited events of the racing year, and this is the place to […]
The Preakness Stakes is coming up on Saturday, May 15, 2021. The second jewel of the American Triple Crown drew a field of 10 top three-year-olds. Find out the top contenders in the race, and learn the best places to place your bets!
After all the drama of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, the racing scene shifts to Pimlico Race Course in anticipation of the running of the 2019 Preakness Stakes. A couple of the high-profile contenders from the Derby are expected in the field, as well as a number of new shooters that add to the handicapping puzzle and could provide good betting value.
The field has been established for the 2016 running of the Belmont Stakes and of the thirteen contenders, there are four horses who competed in the Preakness Stakes (G1) and are moving on to the third jewel of the Triple Crown.
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