By Stefanie Grimm
It was a Godolphin homebred filly by a Darley stallion to take the GI Darley Alcibiades Stakes on Keeneland's Opening Day. GI Spinaway Stakes winner Immersive (Nyquist) carried her strong form to Kentucky from Saratoga and will now head to Del Mar a two-time Grade I winner while still undefeated into the GI NetJets Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.
The race looked to flatter New York form with the top three runners from that Spinaway appearing in Immersive, 'TDN Rising Star' Quietside (Malibu Moon) and Sherbini (Cairo Prince) along with the GIII Pocahontas Stakes runner up Liam in the Dust (Liam's Map). Another Spinaway runner, The Queens M G (Thousand Words), scratched from the Alcibiades in favor of Saturday's GI Frizette Stakes at Aqueduct. And, much like the Pocahontas where was just caught on the wire, it was Liam in the Map who was keen for the lead, engaging in a duel into the first turn with Debutante Stakes runner up Rich City Girl (City of Light). Immersive, who drew outside, settled nicely in third behind that pair and had clear sailing with only Continuity (Speightster) who had rushed up to her inside. The field of seven ran in mostly even pairs of two (bar Sherbini who raced alone out the back) as they covered the half mile in :46.89. Immersive began to inch closer as they swung around the bend, coming on even terms with a fading Liam in the Dust and drawing alongside Rich City Girl at the quarter pole. In what became a two-horse sprint to the wire, the 8-5 favorite had to hold off a rallying Quickick (McKinzie) who made a gusty move up the outside and got within room of the leader despite hanging on her left lead but was ultimately denied as Immersive found more in the final strides to win.
The Alcidiades form is hard to ignore when it gets to the Breeders' Cup. Last year's winner Candied (Candy Ride {Arg}) wound up third while the 2022 winner, Wonder Wheel (Into Mischief), also took victory in the Juvenile Fillies en route to being named Champion 2-year-old filly. Juju's Map (Liam's Map) also hit the Breeders' Cup board in third after taking the Alcibiades in 2021.
“We thought she was very good,” said winning trainer Brad Cox. “I want to start by thanking Sheikh Mohammed (owner of Godolphin) and the whole Godolphin team. She stamped herself as a very good filly from Day 1 when she arrived here at Keeneland in the spring. It's a big win for her. She always acted like she would carry her talent around two turns. I want to thank (jockey) Manny Franco for being aggressive and putting her in the race. She finished up well. Looking at the race, it felt like there were a lot of fillies who would want to do the same thing (stay close to the early pace), based on the pace figures. You can't take speed out of a horse, and she broke and (Manny) did a good job tracking the leaders and she finished up well.”
Franco added: “We wanted to go farther with her since she won first time out, and today she proved that she wanted to go the distance. She's a grinder and today she broke running. That was the plan: to break running and go forward. She was traveling so comfortable. I was pleased with what I had under me. It was a matter of time. At the quarter pole I asked her for more, and she took a little bit to get going, but she got it done. She's a nice filly.”
Pedigree Note:
Nyquist continues his strong year for Darley with a total of 26 stakes winners and four Grade I winners just this year. Out of a winning Bernardini mare, Immersive is out of a daughter of Dubai Escapade, a GISW purchased by Godolphin for $2,000,000 as a 2-year-old in 2004. There is no shortage of big prices in the pedigree as third dam Sassy Pants joined the Hill 'n' Dale Bloodstock roster for $4.5m at Keeneland November in 2006 after producing the likes of GISW Madcap Escapade (Hennessy) (a $3.1m FTKNOV grad) who is in turn responsible for GISW Mi Sueno (Pulpit) who sold to Katsumi Yoshida for $1.9m at FTKNOV in 2013. Gap Year has produced two winners from as many to race and, while she is not represented by a yearling, foaled a filly by Street Sense this spring and returned to Street Sense for 2025.
Friday, Keeneland
DARLEY ALCIBIADES S.-GI, $600,000, Keeneland, 10-4, 2yo, f,
1 1/16m, 1:44.64, ft.
1–IMMERSIVE, 122, f, 2, by Nyquist
1st Dam: Gap Year, by Bernardini
2nd Dam: Dubai Escapade, by Awesome Again
3rd Dam: Sassy Pants, by Saratoga Six
O/B-Godolphin (KY); T-Brad H. Cox; J-Manuel Franco.
$362,700. Lifetime Record: 3-3-0-0, $582,700.
Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus* Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Quickick, 122, f, 2, by McKinzie
1st Dam: Graeme Six (GSW & GISP, $338,854), by Graeme Hall
2nd Dam: Polish Ruby, by Polish Pro
3rd Dam: Ruby Wax, by Gallant Romeo
1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK
TYPE. ($275,000 Wlg '22 KEENOV; $550,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP).
O-Gregory Tramontin; B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds LTD &
Whisper Hill Farm LLC (KY); T-Thomas M. Amoss. $117,000.
3–Quietside, 122, f, 2, by Malibu Moon
1st Dam: Benner Island (GSW & GISP, $305,863), by Speightstown
2nd Dam: Spacy Tracy, by Awesome Again
3rd Dam: Tracy, by Theatrical (Ire)
'TDN Rising Star' O/B-Shortleaf Stable (KY); T-John Alexander
Ortiz. $58,500.
Margins: 1 1/4, 2, 1 1/4. Odds: 1.67, 3.70, 2.95.
Also Ran: Continuity, Sherbini, Rich City Girl, Liam in the Dust. Scratched: The Queens M G.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
What a day for trainer @bradcoxracing! 💪
Immersive aces her two-turn test in the G1 Darley Alcibiades at Keeneland with @jockeyfranco aboard! 🤩 @godolphin
Next stop: #BreedersCup!
🎥 #TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/wBJ3fVnEH7
— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) October 4, 2024
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