‘Queen of the lawn’ Nitrogen claims first elite level victory in Alabama
In the 145th running of the G1 Alabama Stakes, it was Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro) who took home the elite level glory at Saratoga.
Her tour de force two back ob June 7 in a washed-off G3 Wonder Again Stakes was what originally inspired trainer Mark Casse to give his turf star a chance over the main track, and put Nitrogen squarely in the talks for a year-end championship honour in the US after she was crowned Canada's champion juvenile filly last season. Casse may well have gotten his wish with this performance.
Inhaling early leader and stablemate La Cara (Street Sense) and wandering through the stretch, Nitrogen ultimately had more than enough to hold off Good Cheer (Medaglia d'Oro), and the fillies gave their sire the exacta in the Grade 1 contest. Louisiana-bred Margie's Intention (Honor AP) came on in the lane to claim third.
“They went pretty slow early, which I thought would help La Cara, but Dylan (Davis) said Jose (Ortiz) was breathing down his neck the entire time,” said Casse. “Dylan knew what he had to do, I never talked or discussed anything with Jose, but I know Nitrogen had enough speed that she was going to be pretty close.
“I've been coming here since I was 10 years old and the Alabama has always been huge. I can't even explain it. This (winning the Alabama) is all I've ever wanted to do since I was a little boy.”
“This (winning the Alabama) is all I've ever wanted to do since I was a little boy.” - Mark Casse
Casse would not commit either way when asked about a dirt start for Nitrogen, only that he wanted to 'get through today' first and then they'd decide next steps.
Jose Ortiz only had glowing praise for his mount afterwards despite her late race drifting; “When she gets by herself, she tries to get a little bit lost, but I had a clear lead. Luckily, I was clear and nothing happened. So I'll take it.
“(The ceiling) can't get any higher–this horse won a Grade 1 on the dirt now, so it's amazing. Hopefully, she comes back, puts up another couple good few performances and gets 3-year-old filly of the year.”
“(The ceiling) can't get any higher–this horse won a Grade 1 on the dirt now, so it's amazing.” - Jose Ortiz
“This was very impressive, beat some very good horses, and I'd think her next one would be dirt again, but let's see–you are voting for not only the best 3-year-old, but maybe the best horse,” said Len Green of DJ Stable. “Look at the record, look at how many wins, how many stakes wins…that's what you hope for. And of course, we have to give extra carrots to the broodmare because she made the whole thing.”
Out of stakes-placed Tiffany Case, an Uncle Mo half-sister to Graded stakes winner and Grade 1-placed Talk Veuve to Me (Violence), Nitrogen is her dam's second to the races and second Graded runner. Elder half-sister Love to Shop (Violence) won the Listed Toronto Cup Stakes and was four times placed at the Graded level in Canada. Tiffany Case's most recent offspring is a yearling filly by Gun Runner named Sniper. She did not have a foal in 2025 and was bred to Not This Time for 2026.
This is the immediate female family of stakes winner and multiple Graded-placed Winning Point (Point Given) as well as Gilded Wings (Gilded Time), who produced a branch of the family that ultimately yielded Chilean Group 1-placed Good Runner (Chi) (Good Samaritan). Further back, this is also the family of English G1 St Leger-placed Mountain Kingdom and G1 Manhattan Handicap victor Cool.
Nitrogen is Medaglia d'Oro's 30th worldwide Grade 1 winner and his second in 2025 behind Good Cheer.
She Feels Pretty books Breeders' Cup ticket in EP Taylor
Crossing the border into the Great White North boasting a resume laced with a trio of Grade 1 victories, She Feels Pretty (Karakontie {Jpn}) annexed her fourth at the highest level when winning taking a nail-biting renewal of the G1 EP Taylor Stakes at Woodbine, a 'Win and You're In' for the G1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf in November.
According to jockey John Velazquez, She Feels Pretty was actually hit from behind along the backside stretch.
“(She) got really anxious…you can see she got cut through the bandages,” he said. “She got hit pretty good, but then she got pretty keen. So now, I have her covered up, and I've got to get in the clear a little bit. From then on it was a wrestling match with her.”
Given some relief by Velazquez approaching the quarter pole, the 4-year-old rolled to the fore with relative ease while three-wide turning for home, spurted clear in early stretch and was in an all-out drive to win by a head.
“I didn't want to move too soon (because) the horse from Europe (Diamond Rain) was really close and really good,” Velazquez added. “I wrestled with (She Feels Pretty) past the 5/16ths pole and then finally put my hands down to let her do her thing. The last 16th of a mile, I don't know what she saw, but she got lost. I thought, 'Come on, don't do this to me now. We're almost there,' but she got it done.”
“I wrestled with (She Feels Pretty) past the 5/16ths pole and then finally put my hands down to let her do her thing.” - John Velazquez
Trainer Cherie DeVaux indicated She Feels Pretty will “most definitely” accept the ticket into the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar.
She Feels Pretty is out of a winning mare in Summer Sweet, $550,000 juvenile purchase by Payson Stud at the Keeneland January Sale in 2016. The mare is a half to several successful runners including stakes winner Summer Breezing (Langfuhr), stakes winner and Grade-placed Adirondack Summer (Thunder Gulch), and Grade 1-placed Summer Solo (Arch), the dam of multiple Graded winner Solo Album (Curlin) and stakes winner Maedean (Tapit).
This represents the family of French multiple Group 1 winner Act One (GB) (In the Wings {GB}), Group 1-placed Gharir (Ire) (Machiavellian), and Group 1-placed Summer Symphony (Ire) (Caerleon). She Feels Pretty has a 2-year-old half-sister named She Feels Stunning (American Pharoah), also trained by DeVaux, in addition to a yearling half-sister by Olympiad and a half-sister filly foal by Justify.
Nyquist's Velocity sneaks up the fence to shock Del Mar Oaks
Velocity is defined as the speed of an object going in a given direction, and the aptly named Velocity (Nyquist) proved to be moving fastest as she snuck up the fence to post a monster 35-1 upset in the G1 Del Mar Oaks.
The field fanned out for the homeward drive and ante-post favourite Thought Process (Collected) had made her move while 8-5 chance Lush Lips (GB) (Ten Sovereigns {Ire}) was relentlessly closing on the far outside. Diving to the rail as the scramble to her outside finally produced open air, Velocity quickened to strike the front and outkicked the closing Lush Lips to score her career first black-type of any kind. Thought Process managed to save third.
“To be honest I thought she was going to be better on the dirt,” said winning rider Ricardo Gonzalez, who won the second Grade 1 race of his career, here. “But I had a wonderful trip. I was following Antonio (Fresu on Edge of Mali) all the way around. Just waiting for a little seam, and once I saw it, she went right through it. This is such a fun race to race, especially here in Del Mar.”
“But I had a wonderful trip ... just waiting for a little seam, and once I saw it, she went right through it.” - Ricardo Gonzalez
“That's as good of a ride as you'll ever see,” said Michael McCarthy. “I thought she got the perfect trip there. A seam opened up on the fence. It was good. She's had a wonderful couple of weeks down here. She was on her toes, in a great way walking around the paddock, coming out through the tunnel. I liked everything I saw today.”
Velocity is the second black-type earner for her dam, but the first at the highest level. Her eldest half-brother Open Road (Quality Road) was stakes-placed in his career and her second older half-sibling was a multiple winner.
Blast, herself a half-sister to stakes winner Home Run Maker (Into Mischief) and Grade 1-placed Fun (Harlan's Holiday), has a juvenile filly named Holly's Holiday (Maxfield) as her most recent foal of racing age. There is also a yearling Cyberknife filly named Dash and a 2025 Taiba filly. She was bred back to National Treasure for 2026.
The victress is Nyquist's ninth worldwide Grade 1 winner and his second in 2025 joining Cavalieri, who claimed the G1 B Wayne Hughes Beholder Mile Stakes this past March. Group/Grade 1-placed runners for the stallion this season include Gosger, Crimson Advocate, Nysos, Immersive, Randomized, and Zio Jo.
