Pennsylvania's Heroine Scores in GI Madison Stakes

   A caravan of over 20 people made the 500-mile journey from central Pennsylvania to central Kentucky last week to watch star Pennsylvania-bred Just One Time (Not This Time) step up to Grade I company in the Madison S. at Keeneland. Their dedication was rewarded when the 4-year-old filly rallied from the last to first to get the win for Warrior's Reward LLC and Commonwealth New Era Racing.

“She has developed a bit of a following in Pennsylvania,” said Donnie Brown, who operates Warrior's Reward LLC with partner Tom McClay. “There was a pretty good group of people in that winner's circle picture.”

The chestnut filly had more fans cheering her on from back home.

“At one point after the race I looked down at my phone and there were about 76 text messages,” Brown said with a laugh. “They were all from racing people at Penn National and from Midlantic breeders saying how proud and happy they were. I sat down and said thank you to everyone, but by the time we got back to our table I looked down and had another 94 text messages. It was unbelievable.”

Just One Time has been a bit of a celebrity in Pennsylvania since the day she was foaled. Warrior's Reward LLC purchased her dam Ida Clark (Speighstown) at the 2017 Keeneland November Sale for $45,000 with Just One Time in utero. The Not This Time filly arrived on Easter Sunday.

“We took the whole family over to see her,” Brown recalled. “From day one she had fans on and off the farm who thought she was a good-looking filly.”

Warrior's Reward LLC breeds almost exclusively to race, with a focus on producing Pennsylvania-breds, so the filly was always slated to go straight to the racetrack. She was sent to trainer Mike Salvaggio, who was high on her from the get-go, but Brown wasn't equally convinced until he heard an outside opinion.

A young Just One Time | photo courtesy Donnie Brown

“My partner and Mike always said she was going to be something special, but I didn't buy it until one of our other trainers called and asked if we owned a chestnut filly in Mike's barn. He had watched her train and said she was a nice horse.”

In May of her sophomore year, Just One Time won on debut at Penn National, but showed she had much to learn when she was rambunctious in the gate. She won her next start by over four lengths in the Malvern Rose S. at Presque Isle Downs, but her inexperience caught up with her when she accepted her first and only loss a month later in the Lady Erie S.

“Angel Rodriguez was up and said after the race that he just couldn't slow her down,” Brown said. “They were wanting to go fast and he couldn't get her to rate. She didn't want to give up the lead.”

The competitive filly returned to the winner's circle in her next two starts at Penn National, first an allowance race where she trounced the field by over six lengths, and then the New Start S., where afterwards Todd Mostoller inquired about buying into the filly for his Commonwealth New Era Racing.

Just One Time was sent to Brad Cox, where she received months of schooling and put in eight works before returning to the starting gate.

“Brad spent some time teaching her how to become a more versatile racehorse,” Brown noted. “She was always wanting to beat anything that went by her, but he got her to relax and slow down.”

The Cox barn was rewarded for their months of work when the filly made her first start against open company in the GII Inside Information S. on the GI Pegasus World Cup undercard. The 4-year-old was fractious in the gate and broke slow, but circled four and five wide around the turn for home to get the win.

“I remember [Joel] Rosario saying that she didn't like getting dirt in her face, so he decided to get her as wide as he could go and see what happened,” Brown explained. “Once he put her wide, she started running.”

Just One Time's victory in the Inside Information marked Brown's first time in the winner's circle for a graded stakes as an owner, but he said he could not have envisioned the experience he was handed after the filly's win at Keeneland.

“What an experience it was,” he said emphatically. “After the big winner's circle photo, they take you to another trophy presentation and then they invited us to the Director's Room. [Before this weekend,] I didn't even know it existed. It was very special and you get a real sense of history and accomplishment there. I've never even thought about having a horse like this, so I'm never ready for the extra goodness that comes from an accomplishment like what this filly did there.”

Just One Time was hammered down to late favoritism in the Madison S. and despite another awkward break and troubled trip, she managed to swing six wide going down the lane with Flavien Prat aboard to edge past MGSW Bell's the One (Majesticperfection).

“She always seems to find a way early to get herself in trouble,” Brown noted. “She's so competitive that the jockeys say she can be difficult because she wants to pass everyone, but they say once you get her out of traffic, she really goes. We're optimistic that one day she will get an easy trip, but she has learned something every time she runs. I think the biggest thing that we're realizing is that she's just so competitive.”

Brown said plans have not been discussed yet as to where his superstar filly could end up next, but he said he has confidence that there is still more to come for Just One Time. In the meantime, he is closely following the progeny of Warrior's Reward, the Grade I-winning stallion his partnership owns. This year the son of Medaglia d'Oro is expecting his first crop of 2-year-olds since he arrived at WynOaks Farm in Pennsylvania in 2019.

“The first year he was here, he covered 115 mares,” Brown reported. “There are about 80 2-year-olds out there in training now and I've heard from quite a few people that they're very happy with them. Tom and I own about two dozen that are under saddle already. He passes on really good bone and size in his babies. When he was in Kentucky he had runners in the Breeders' Cup and in Dubai, Del Mar and Saratoga. We're hoping some of that success passes on right here to the Pennsylvania program.”

As he hopes for future success with Warrior's Reward, for now Brown is happy to represent the filly that looks to be Pennsylvania's flagbearer this year.

“I've been racing horses for 30 years now but with Just One Time, even if you know she's not running for a month, people still talk to you about her,” Brown said. “I get excited any time we have a horse entered, but at the graded-stakes level, it has me talking to people everywhere. It's a whole new level of having something to be excited about.”