Blamed Leads Gate-To-Wire in Comely

Blamed | Chelsea Durand

Looking to remain perfect at a route of ground, Blamed (Blame) was rated along nicely by Julien Leparoux, had a nice kick in upper stretch and held off a late bid from an unlucky Remedy (Creative Cause) for a three-quarter length victory in Friday's GIII Comely S. at Aqueduct.

Trained in New Mexico by Joel Marr through the first half-dozen starts of her career, the bay aired by better than six lengths in the Island Fashion S. over a flat mile in February and in the Mar. 25 Sunland Park Oaks to run her winning skein to five straight the following month. Forced to miss the GI Kentucky Oaks with a fractured right hind pastern, she resurfaced in the Bill Mott barn and set the majority of the pace in the GII Lexus Raven Run S. at Keeneland Oct. 20, only to be run down late by subsequent GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint winner Shamrock Rose (First Dude).

Sent off the 6-5 chalk while stretching back out to two turns, Blamed was allowed a fairly soft time of it on the engine, owing much to the tardy dispatch of Remedy, getting the opening half-mile in a comfortable :49.01 and six panels in 1:13.14. Shaken up at the top of the stretch, she opened daylight on her rivals and was home narrowly in front. Remedy–a latest second in the GIII Remington Park Oaks after making the bulk of the running– bobbled at the break from the widest gate and lingered towards the back of the field early on. She began to improve her position, made eye-catching progress on the turn and was able to sustain a three-furlong run that nearly carried her to victory. Indy Union (Union Rags) was third.

“She's fast, naturally fast,” the winning jockey commented. “We could have slowed down a little bit, but she was very comfortable and she did it very nicely. She was going easy the whole way, and when I asked her, she really kicked in very nice for me. I think we had a little bit more left in the tank at the wire, so that's nice.”

Pedigree Notes:

A $77,000 Keeneland September buyback, but later sold for $70,000 post RNA, Blamed is the 11th group/graded winner for her sire and is out of a stakes-placed half-sister to MGSW sprinter Pacific Ocean (Ghostzapper). Blamed's third dam Oscillate was not only a full-sister to champion Rhythm, but was also the dam of Mutakddim (Seeking the Gold), a stakes winner and multiple group-placed in Europe before becoming a leading dual-hemisphere stallion to South America. This is also the female family of U.S. Grade I winner Frost Giant (Giant's Causeway). The dam of the winning 2-year-old Chase Greatness (More Than Ready), Salsa Star foaled a Super Saver filly in 2017.

Friday, Aqueduct
COMELY S.-GIII, $200,000, Aqueduct, 11-23, 3yo, f, 1 1/8m, 1:51.98, ft.
1–BLAMED, 122, f, 3, by Blame&log=">Blame
1st Dam: Salsa Star (SP-Eng), by Giant's Causeway
2nd Dam: Miss Salsa, by Unbridled
3rd Dam: Oscillate, by Seattle Slew
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($77,000 RNA Ylg '16 KEESEP).
O-Cleber J Massey; B-Sagamore Farm (MD); T-William I Mott;
J-Julien R Leparoux. $110,000. Lifetime Record: 8-6-2-0,
$401,260. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Werk Nick Rating: A+.
2–Remedy, 120, f, 3, Creative Cause–Daisy Mason, by
Orientate. ($200,000 Ylg '16 KEESEP). O-Twin Creeks Racing
Stables LLC; B-Brereton C Jones & B Ned Jones (KY); T-Brad
H Cox. $40,000.
3–Indy Union, 120, f, 3, Union Rags–Fapindy, by A.P. Indy.
($50,000 Ylg '16 KEEJAN). O-Robert G Hahn; B-Mt. Joy Stables
Inc & Highclere Inc (KY); T-Jeremiah C Englehart. $24,000.
Margins: 3/4, 10, HF. Odds: 1.20, 5.90, 6.00.
Also Ran: Split Time, Hey Niki, Stronger Than Ever, Alberobello, War Cabinet. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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