Trip Alert: Brielle’s Appeal

Saturday’s Kentucky Downs Ladies Sprint was won by Ruby Notion in course-record time (the record was broken in the next race), but if there is a filly to watch going forward, it might be 3rd-place finisher Brielle’s Appeal.

Brielle’s Appeal was a LoneSpeed Horse to Watch on Saturday (NOT because she figured to be the LONE SPEED and that’s the name of this website), and we try to avoid any bias when reviewing a race and offering analysis.  But her performance was so impressive in defeat that she’s definitely one you’ll want to keep an eye out for at Keeneland or wherever she turns up next.  First, a review of her PPs heading into the race on Saturday…

On paper, it looked to me like Brielle’s Appeal would be on the lead, and maybe even on the lead by herself.  And a glance at her PPs shows that she does her best running when she’s leading them early.  In fact, her only poor effort to date came in her prior start when she wasn’t able to get clear.  But when she does, she’s hard to catch.  Winning 5 1/2 furling turf races at Fair Grounds and Keeneland are never easy.  She won two of them by open lengths this spring after seizing command at the start.  It seems she’s a need-the-lead type who can romp when things go her way.  So at the 5-1 morning line (and off odds of 6-1) and absent any true sprinter early speed to fight with her (on paper anyway) she was certainly a intriguing alternative to Lull and Ruby Notion.

But then the unexpected happened.  As you’ll see in the chart below, 77-1 outsider Bixby Lou came charging up on the outside of Brielle’s Appeal shortly after the break, forced them both into quick fractions, and then faded fast when the real running started, leaving Brielle’s Appeal the task of continuing on to the wire and having to hold off Lull and Ruby Notion after going so quick early.  And, for me and the others who bet Brielle’s Appeal, it didn’t work out.

So let’s just file this away and hope that wherever Brielle’s Appeal turns up next, she isn’t 3-5. Because she ran huge on Saturday and showed that even when she does NOT get the early lead all to herself, she can still run a big race.

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