Guided on the lawn by former Eclipse Outstanding Jockey Jose Ortiz, May Day Ready (Tapit–Nemoralia, by More Than Ready) pulled the proverbial wool over the eyes of her competitors by absconding with every pole to take the GII Lake Placid Stakes at the Spa on Saturday.
May Day Ready made the local course her own over a year ago when she broke her maiden by a nose at first asking. The bay shipped to Kentucky Downs and won the Juvenile Fillies Stakes in early September, then netted the GII Jessamine Stakes at Keeneland Oct. 4. At Del Mar in the GI John Deere Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, May Day Ready turned in a more than respectable runner-up sandwiched between Lake Victoria (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro).
Late in her juvenile year, Katie Rich sent their filly to run in the G1 Hanshin Juvenile Fillies Stakes in Kyoto, Japan where she was well-beaten. After coming off the bench to finish third to Nitogen in the GIII Wonder Again Stakes upstate June 7, the Joe Lee trainee ran fourth in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational July 5.
Sent off as the 9-5 second choice here, May Day Ready swiped the lead heading into the first turn to become the controlling speed. Having it her own way up the backstretch and around the far turn, the filly geared up for battle entering the lane as the closers were set to take their best shots. However, May Day Ready kept finding and favorite Play With Fire (Oscar Performance) did not have the response that was needed as the second choice got the trophy.
Trainer Joe Lee said, “I left it up to Jose [Ortiz], I told him, 'you decide what you want to do.' But I knew she'd be fresh. I knew if she got a clean break, with the horses that were in there, should someone not decide to go, she may just be on the lead.
“You always hope it [the pace] works out that way. You always hope they run home. I was glad to see 24 and change, 49 and change, obviously hoping she'd run home. To be honest with you, she is a horse that likes competition. When she has a horse next to her, she'll dig in a little bit more than when she's by herself. Jose sprinted away there [at the end].
“So Jose, when I said 'what do you think?' He said, 'well, I think there's one or so with speed right to the outside of us, but I'll just let her [decide], if she wants to be behind, I'll let her do her thing.'”
Pedigree Notes:
The great Tapit (by Pulpit) continues to amass more graded plaudits for his vault with an honor roll that includes the likes of young sires like Essential Quality and Flightline. The winner is the second foal to the races for English GSW & U.S. MGISP Nemoralia (More Than Ready), whose first was the late Bosque Redondo (War Front). This dam's last registered foal of record is unraced 2-year-old filly in-training Munnorlia (Ire) (Munnings). As for May Day Ready's grand dam that is SW Alina (Came Home), and her extended female family includes MSW Bear River (Flameaway).
Saturday, Saratoga
LAKE PLACID S.-GII, $400,000, Saratoga, 8-23, 3yo, f, 1mT, 1:35.70, fm.
1–MAY DAY READY, 124, f, 3, by Tapit
1st Dam: Nemoralia (GSW & G1SP-Eng, MGISP-USA,
$544,633), by More Than Ready
2nd Dam: Alina, by Came Home
3rd Dam: Lady Heroine, by Sea Hero
($60,000 Ylg '23 FTKOCT; $325,000 2yo '24 OBSAPR). O-KatieRich Stables LLC; B-White Birch Farm, Inc. (KY); T-Joseph R. Lee; J-Jose L. Ortiz. $220,000. Lifetime Record: 8-4-1-1, $1,300,025. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Play With Fire, 122, f, 3, Oscar Performance–Streaming Fire, by Street Sense. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($85,000 2yo '24 OBSMAR). O-LSU Stables; B-Lothenbach Stables Inc (MN); T-Chad C. Brown. $80,000.
3–Eponine (Ire), 120, f, 3, Tamayuz (GB)–Porcelaine (Ire), by Kodiac (GB). O-Repole Stable; B-Cotton House Bloodstock (IRE); T-Philippe Sogorb. $48,000.
Margins: HF, 2, HF. Odds: 1.85, 1.55, 3.95.
Also Ran: Reining Flowers, Warming, Scarlet Sands.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
MAY DAY READY was ready to deliver a big win in the G2 Lake Placid Stakes under @jose93_ortiz for trainer @josephleeracing! pic.twitter.com/80RUcRUQeJ
— NYRA (🎪) (@TheNYRA) August 23, 2025
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