RACE SEVEN OBSERVATIONS by The Wizard on Friday, May 01, 2009

(3) MISS ISELLA - Stunning upset engineered by Calvin Borel, who kept this horse along the inside while saving every inch of ground in a sharp effort. She saved ground throughout, and continued to ‘scrape the paint’ into the stretch. Despite being pinned down along the rail, she eventually fought her way thru a narrow opening and then outgamed the heavily favored (4) ONE CAROLINE. The 1-2 favorite, (4) ONE CAROLINE, set an uncontested pace down the backstretch. Although she did respond when challenged by both (3) MISS ISELLA and (1) SWIFT TEMPER around the far turn, jockey Edgar Prado made a error by leaving the rail open for the winner, and that tactical mistake cost him dearly. (1) SWIFT TEMPER - moved in earnest to challenge for the lead around the far turn, but was unable to keep pace and then outlasted the others. (8) UNBRIDLED BELLE - a big animal, did not appear to handle the surface, racing wide while off the pace down the backstretch. She was not abused by her rider when hopelessly beaten, in a race that had to be a ‘prep’ off-the-layoff for her. ** Mark her down as a Horse To Watch on a dry track in New York, or at Delaware Park, a racetrack she simply adores.