Forever Souper Takes $100,000 Prince George’s County
Alla Breve Upsets $75,000 Jameela in Stakes Debut
LAUREL, MD – Ken Ramsey’s Whenigettoheaven dueled with stubborn pacesetter Tidewater the length of the stretch before sticking his neck out at the wire and providing trainer Nolan Ramsey with his first career stakes victory in the $75,000 Ben’s Cat.
It was the second straight win for Whenigettoheaven ($3.40), both at Laurel, since Ramsey took over training the 5-year-old gelding for his grandfather, a multiple Eclipse Award-winning owner and breeder.
“We knew we were coming up here so we were keeping an eye out for some Maryland-breds,” said Ramsey, a former longtime assistant to trainer Mike Maker that started his first horse April 20 at Gulfstream Park. “He had some back class and had been running some really good races, so we took a shot with him. He’s really come around for us.”
Tidewater, exiting a popular 2 ¼-length open allowance win sprinting 5 ½ furlongs June 15 on the Laurel turf, was quickest from the gate and in front after an opening quarter of 22.68 seconds. Jockey J.G. Torrealba positioned Whenigettoheaven in second along the rail with Matta, third in last year’s Ben’s Cat, racing third and Great Idea in fourth.
It was still Tidewater in front after the half went in 45.36 but his lead was dwindling as Torrealba tipped out and moved up alongside the leader midway around the far turn. The two straightened for home together with Tidewater on the inside and Whenigettoheaven drifting out slightly to the center of the track and powering to the wire in 1:08.26 over a firm Fort Marcy turf course.
Great Idea was third, two lengths behind runner-up Tidewater and a neck ahead of 29-1 long shot Mission Man in fourth. Had to Have Him, Matta, Sue Loves Barbados, Tiz No Clown and Bump N Run completed the order of finish.
Mission Man’s sibling and stablemate Witty, the Grade 2-placed six-time stakes winner, defending champion and 6-5 program favorite, was scratched, along with Johnyz From Albany and main-track-only entrant Arden’sluckytobe.
“A nice horse will make anybody look smart. He’s really come to form for us. He’s a very nice horse and it was a perfect ride,” Ramsey said. “He was really sharp out of the gate in his last start, so being towards the front didn’t really surprise me today. Great ride, really no complaints. He had everything his way, so we’re just happy to be here.”
Ramsey registered his first career winner May 10 at Gulfstream. Stabled there as well as Laurel, Ramsey got his first win in Maryland with Longbranch Lou May 26 at historic Pimlico Race Course, and his first Laurel win came courtesy of Whenigettoheaven June 7.
The 27-year-old Ramsey was presented with the winner’s trophy by 91-year-old Hall of Fame horseman King Leatherbury, who bred, owned and trained Ben’s Cat.
“It was an honor to be in the winner’s circle with him,” Ramsey said. “They don’t come any better than Ben’s Cat. It was kind of a cool win, especially for the history of Maryland and my first year up here. It’s special for me, too.”
Ben’s Cat won 32 of 63 career races, 26 stakes and more than $2.6 million in purses over eight racing seasons. A four-time Maryland-bred Horse of the Year, Ben’s Cat died July 18, 2017 of complications from colic surgery at the age of 11.
Forever Souper Takes $100,000 Prince George’s County
Live Oak Plantation homebred Forever Souper, third as the favorite in his previous two starts, rediscovered his multiple stakes-winning form with a popular front-running 4 ¾-length triumph in Sunday’s listed $100,000 Prince George’s County at Laurel Park.
Forever Souper ($3.60) completed 1 1/8 miles over a firm Kelso turf course in 1:46.27 under jockey Mychel Sanchez to earn his seventh lifetime win and third in a stakes following Gulfstream Park’s Sunshine Turf and Tampa Bay Downs’ Turf Classic over the winter against fellow Florida-breds.
“This horse has just done so good for us,” winning trainer Michael Trombetta said. “We had him last summer at Monmouth, he won a few races. Then we went to South Florida and he won a few stakes down there. He’s just held his form so good. He’s had a couple of races where he didn’t have the best of racing luck, but other than that he’s about as genuine as could be.”
Forever Souper and Sanchez took control of the race early breaking from inside his three rivals, going in 24.40 seconds for a quarter-mile pressed by Grade 1 winner Highland Chief. Forever Souper went a half in 48 seconds and began to gain separation rounding the far turn as Highland Chief was urged to keep up and fend off stablemate Hardspun Reason as well as late-running The Addison Pour.
Sanchez wrapped up on Forever Souper approaching the finish line while Highland Chief held second, 1 ¼ lengths ahead of The Addison Pour with another half-length back to Hardspun Reason. Stellar Lute, Wow Whata Summer, Eldest Son and main-track-only entrant Ain’t Da Beer Cold were scratched.
“It just kind of worked out that way,” Trombetta said of the front-running tactics. “None of the other horses had a whole lot of speed and having the rail draw I told Mychel that unless something goes wrong, he’s going to be in control so just do the best you can with that, and that’s exactly what happened.”
Alla Breve Upsets $75,000 Jameela in Stakes Debut
Runnymoore Racing’s Alla Breve came with a steady run down the center of the stretch to reel in front-running Hollywood Walk and Bosserati and emerge from a three-way photo a head winner of the $75,000 Jameela.
Ridden by Horacio Karamanos for trainer Michael Matz, Alla Breve ($17.80) covered six furlongs over a firm Fort Marcy turf course in 1:09.15 to notch her second straight victory following a come-from-behind neck triumph in an open June 14 allowance going 5 ½ furlongs on the Laurel grass.
Alla Breve, making her stakes debut, was unhurried in the early going as 2023 Stormy Blues winner Bosserati broke running and quickly established the lead through a quarter-mile in 22.94 seconds and a half in 45.95, pressed to her outside by 3-2 favorite Kissed by Fire with Speightful Sis saving ground inside in third and Hollywood Walk in the clear three wide in fourth.
Bosserati led by a slim margin as the field turned for home attempting to hold off bids up the rail from Speightful Sis and on her outside by Hollywood Walk, who forged a short lead inside the eighth pole. Meanwhile, Karamanos had swung Alla Breve out at the top of the stretch and they continued to gain ground until winning a head bob at the wire.
Hollywood Walk was second, a neck ahead of Bosserati. It was another length back to Speightful Sis followed by One Silk Stocking, Circle Home, Kissed by Fire, Money’s Worth, Bay Street and Double Fireball. Mattitude, the lone also-eligible, and main-track-only entrant Royal Whisper were scratched.
“She’s been a tough little filly for us,” Matz said. “We’re quite happy with the way she’s come around this year. We ran her a couple times in Florida and then gave her a bit of a break and she’s come back and has been kind of rewarding us for the break we gave her.”
Alla Breve, a 4-year-old daughter of Mendelssohn out of the Curlin mare Split It, was purchased for $160,000 by Runnymoore’s Greg and Caroline Bentley as a yearling in October 2021 and captured her debut the following fall in a 5 ½-furlong turf maiden special weight at Laurel. She now has four wins, one second and one third from 10 starts and $169,120 in purse earnings.
“We got her down at the Timonium sale and one of the reasons we did is because she was a Maryland-bred,” Matz said. “We thought we were stepping up a little bit here and she handled this. She has been training well at home and she worked well last week, and we wanted to give her this opportunity.”
Meaning ‘beautiful’ in Arabic, Jameela won 16 stakes including the Maskette (G1), Ladies (G1) and Delaware (G1) handicaps before being retired following the 1982 season as the first Maryland-bred to surpass $1 million in lifetime earnings. She had two foals, the first being 1988 champion sprinter Gulch, before passing away from colic in 1985. She was elected to the Maryland-bred Hall of Fame in 2013.