“I almost wondered if it was a mistake when I saw :25,” Mandella added. “I thought we would go in sub-:23, :45 and change for the second, and I thought the final time would be under 1:34.” “If someone told me before the race that we would go :25 for the first quarter, I would say ‘no way,’ ” Stevens said. Stellar Wind loomed on the rail under jockey Victor Espinoza and found space in the stretch, but never made a serious challenge.
With fractions of :25.03 and :49.31 through a half-mile, Beholder was only a half-length back in second, then took her own half-length advantage after three-quarters of a mile went in 1:12.53. She now has 10 Grade 1 victories for Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella.īeholder broke well from post-position two, and Stevens was able to get her out from the inside as Lost Bus from post-position five hit the front going into the first turn. Stevens guided the 6-year-old mare past the finish line in 1:35.97 on a fast main track for her eighth straight win, all in stakes competition. Beholder took command without any asking from Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens on the final turn and effortlessly held off a late rally from fellow champion Stellar Wind to win by 1 1/2 lengths. In the $400,000 Vanity Mile Stakes on a hot day on June 4 at Santa Anita Park, the three-time champion only broke a sweat because of the nearly 90-degree temperatures in Arcadia, Calif.Ĭutting back in distance to a mile for the first time since September 2013, the daughter of Henny Hughes raced just off leisurely fractions set by Lost Bus. Regardless of the competition or the distance, Spendthrift Farm’s Beholder just keeps rolling along.