January Race Results For Three-Year-Old Fillies

Juvenile Champion Stardom Bound Was Expected to Lead This Season

Apr 3, 2009 BarbaraAnne Helberg

Talk of the gray roan filly Stardom Bound participating in the Kentucky Derby is now nil. Meanwhile, Gemswick Park and Justwhistledixie won 2009 season openers.

Gemswick Park, Speightstown (Gone West)--Queen's Park, by Relaunch, got her champion sprinter daddy off to a good start in 2009 by whipping her next best rival by a neck in the first week of January. The filly's half-brother, Haynesfield, a Speightstown son, won the January Count Fleet Stakes. Filly Justwhistledixie prevailed in the January Ruthless Stakes.

Stardom Bound Changes Hands

Although many who witnessed Stardom Bound's huge come-from-behind victory in the 2008 Breeders' Cup two-year-old championship think the filly could easily run with the boys, new trainer Bobby Frankel has remained immovable concerning that prospect.

After her Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies triumph under jockey Mike Smith, the daughter of 2004 star Tapit was sold by owner Charles Cono to IEAH Stables, Paul Pompa Jr., Michael Dubb, and Golden Goose Ent. Christopher S. Paasch was Stardom Bound's conditioner before the sale, which handed training duties to Frankel.

Girls Versus Boys Not for Stardom Bound

Frankel, one of the nation's winningest trainers, believes the Triple Crown race schedule is too demanding and can ruin a good young colt, and he believes fillies should run against their own gender. He has almost diverted attention from the talented filly in favor of keeping her on a low-key schedule of female competition without discussing other options, including even the Filly Triple Crown.

Stardom Bound appeared in the Breeders' Cup to be hardy enough and eager enough to take on the same path exploited by the female hulk Ruffian, a seemingly worthy counterpart to the majestic, brawny colts of the 1970s. Ruffian was the last filly to win the female version of the Triple Crown; then she took on 1975 Kentucky Derby champion Foolish Pleasure, and never again saw a racetrack.

The ill-fated Eight Belles ran second to the strapping colt Big Brown last season and broke down horrifically in her gallop out. She was euthanized on the track before cheering Kentucky Derby onlookers realized she had been dealt a grievous ending.

It cannot be a surprise that many horsemen, like Frankel, prefer to let the great girls run against like greats, and to let the boys do battle amongst themselves. Stardom Bound was scheduled to open her 2009 campaign at Santa Anita in the Las Virgenes Stakes.

January Filly Race Results

January 4 ----- Old Hat Stakes at Gulfstream ----- 6 F ----- (1) Gemswick Park in 1;09.77; (2) Elusive Heat; (3) Frolic's Dream.

January 4 ----- Ruthless Stakes at Aqueduct ----- 6 F ----- (1) Justwhistledixie in 1:10.81; (2) Gnome's Delight; (3) Ocarson.

January 10 ----- Busanda Stakes at Aqueduct ----- 8.32 F ----- (1) Pumpkin Shell in 1:42.30; (2) Chocolate Pop; (3) Don't Forget Gil.

January 10 ----- Tiburon Stakes at Golden Gate ----- 6 F ----- (1) Ultra Blend in 1:09.62; (2) Pretty Katherine; (3) Point of Reference.

January 11 ----- Santa Ysabel Stakes at Santa Anita ----- 8-1/2 F ----- (1) Century Park in 1:43.32; (2) Haka; (3) Will O Way.

January 17 ----- Sant Ynez Stakes at Santa Anita ----- 7 F ----- (1) Alpha Kitten in 1:21.84; (2) Evita Argentina; (3) Nan.

January 17 ------ Gasparilla Stakes at Tampa Bay ----- 7 F ----- (1) Rock Candy in 1:25.63; (2) Vicki'sprideandjoy; (3) Market Vendor.

January 17 ----- Genesis Stakes at Delta Downs ----- 7 F ----- (1) Southern Yankee in 1:26.33; (2) On the Menu; (3) Smokin Again.

January 18 ----- Sweetest Chant Stakes at Gulfstream ----- 8 F turf ----- (1) Oilgonewile in 1:36.24; (2) Weekend Strike; (3) Exe.

January 24 ----- Dixie Belle Stakes at Oaklawn ----- 6 F ----- (1) Hello Again in 1:12.52; (2) She's Extreme; (3) Shining Moment.

January 24 ----- Sunshine Millions Oaks at Santa Anita ------ 6 F ----- (1) Beltene in 1:09.16; (2) Hooh Why; (3) Yodelady O.

January 25 ----- El Paso Times Handicap at Sunland ----- 6-1/2 F ----- (1) Cherry One in 1:16.83; (2) A Day for Dancing; (3) Lady Hi Tech.

January 30 ----- Forward Gal Stakes at Gulfstream ----- 7 F ----- (1) Frolic's Dream in 1:24.15; (2) Renda; (3) Dr. Zic.

January 31 ----- California Oaks at Golden Gate Fields ----- 8-1/2 F ----- (1) Will O Way in 1:45.23; (2) Point of Reference; (3) Oro Blanco.

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