By Alan Carasso
Easily the least-preferred of a Chad Brown-trained threesome in Saturday's GI First Lady S. at Keeneland and the lesser-fancied of two runners in the race for owner Peter Brant, Gina Romantica (Into Mischief) came with a stinging final-furlong flurry and ran down her commonly owned stablemate and heavily favored defending champion 'TDN Rising Star' In Italian (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) to post an 11-1 upset.
Hammered into 2-5 favoritism, In Italian made the lead and while the early fractions of :23.40 and :46.80 weren't overly taxing, the 5-year-old was allowed no breathers, as her GI Diana S.-winning stable companion Whitebeam (GB) (Caravaggio) led a host of pursuers that followed closely behind. In Italian still held the call after six furlongs in 1:10.32–having gone the third quarter-mile in :23.32–and looked like she would be tough to reel in, but Gina Romantica, who'd sat a rail-skimming journey and was quietly ridden by Tyler Gaffalione from just behind midfield, advanced inside on the turn and was steered off heels into the stretch. In Italian was still going great guns up front and was anything but stopping, but Gina Romantica flashed home to prevail in a driving finish. Former claimer Evvie Jets (Twirling Candy) picked up some valuable Grade I black-type in third.
“She broke good. She traveled so great throughout,” Gaffalione said. “I didn't have to take too much of a hold. She was very comfortable where she was. Coming into the stretch, once I found room toward the outside, she really exploded–finished her job really well.”
A $1.05-million Keeneland September yearling purchase, Gina Romantica was joining Vacare (Lear Fan) as winners of Keeneland's signature race for 3-year-old fillies–the GI QE II Challenge Cup–and the First Lady in consecutive seasons. Dayatthespa (City Zip), the first of Brown's now seven First Lady winners, won the QE II in 2012 and the First Lady two years later. Brown has trained the First Lady winner each year since 2018. Gina Romantica was having her third start this season, having finished fourth to stablemate Consumer Spending (More Than Ready) in the GIII Eatontown S. June 17 ahead of a runner-up effort in the GI Beverly D. S. at Colonial Aug. 12.
Pedigree Notes:
Just $6,000 was required for Machmer Hall to acquire the newly turned 3-year-old filly Special Me at the 2009 Keeneland January Sale and it has been almost nothing but blue skies since.
Stonetastic was the mare's second foal and initial success story, winning a pair of Grade IIs while finishing runner-up in the GI Humana Distaff S. and earning north of $856,000. Stonetastic's Gun Runner filly of 2021, now named Gifted Runner, fetched $925,000 at Keeneland September in 2022, while the Brogdens acquired her 4-year-old daughter Stonetonic (Candy Ride {Arg}) for $400,000 in foal to Yaupon at KEENOV last fall.
Special Me's foal of 2013, 'TDN Rising Star' Gift Box, became the first Grade I winner out of Special Me when annexing the Santa Anita H. as a 6-year-old in 2019. She is also the dam of Special Forces, a multiple graded winner on the Woodbine synthetic track. The yearling full-brother to Gina Romantica sold to M.V. Magnier for $1.2 million at Keeneland September last month and Special Me produced a full-sister to Gift Box this past Mar. 27 before helping to comprise the first book of mares bred to Flightline.
#1 GINA ROMANTICA ($25.02) flies down the stretch to catch favored stablemate In Italian (GB) in the $750,000 GI First Lady Stakes at Keeneland!
The filly by @spendthriftfarm's Into Mischief was ridden by @Tyler_Gaff for trainer Chad Brown and owner Peter Brant. pic.twitter.com/JctVJkRoKm
— TVG (@TVG) October 7, 2023
Saturday, Keeneland
FIRST LADY S. PRESENTED BY UK HEALTHCARE-GI, $729,500, Keeneland, 10-7, 3yo/up, f/m, 1mT, 1:33.70, fm.
1–GINA ROMANTICA, 124, f, 4, by Into Mischief
1st Dam: Special Me, by Unbridled's Song
2nd Dam: Delta Danielle, by Lord Avie
3rd Dam: Domasco Danielle, by Same Direction
($1,025,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP). O-Peter M. Brant; B-Machmer Hall, Carrie Brogden & Craig Brogden (KY); T-Chad C. Brown; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $447,563. Lifetime Record: 10-5-2-0, $1,108,603. *1/2 to Special Forces (Candy Ride {Arg}), MGSW-Can, SP-USA, $452,383; 1/2 to Gift Box (Twirling Candy), GISW, $1,127,060; 1/2 to Stonetastic (Mizzen Mast), MGSW & GISP, $856,062. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–In Italian (GB), 124, m, 5, by Dubawi (Ire)
1st Dam: Florentina (Aus) (GSW-Aus, $250,958), by Redoute's Choice (Aus)
2nd Dam: Celebria (Aus), by Peintre Celebre
3rd Dam: Twyla (Aus), by Danehill
'TDN Rising Star'. (475,000gns Ylg '19 TATOCT). O-Peter M. Brant; B-Fairway Thoroughbreds (GB); T-Chad C. Brown. $125,125.
3–Evvie Jets, 124, m, 5, by Twirling Candy
1st Dam: Natchez Trace, by Consolidator
2nd Dam: Crystal Cream, by Secretariat
3rd Dam: Clear Copy, by Copy Chief
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($75,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-The Estate of Robert J. Amendola; B-Farfellow Farms Ltd. (KY); T-Mertkan Kantarmaci. $72,188.
Margins: HD, 3 3/4, HF. Odds: 11.51, 0.45, 20.34.
Also Ran: Whitebeam (GB), Gam's Mission, Jumbly (GB), New Year's Eve, Thisnameisokay.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
