In her first time outside of New York-bred company, Pure Silver showed she was up to the challenge when she shook free of her competition and pulled away to win the Aug. 12 $200,000 Adirondack Stakes (G2) by 9 1/2 lengths.
Now undefeated in three starts, Twin Creeks Racing Stables’ Mission Impazible filly gave trainer Todd Pletcher his fifth victory in the grade 2 race at Saratoga Race Course.
"She won pretty convincingly," Pletcher said. "She's pretty fast. She didn't actually get away quite as easily as she normally does, but she made up for it quickly and got to the lead the right way. She kind of ran them off their feet from there.
"It's been a hard track sometimes to make up a lot of ground on. We knew that this filly was naturally fast and we were going to let her do her thing."
The trainer said that he would consider the grade 1 Spinaway Stakes for the filly's next start.
"I think we'll certainly take a look at it (the Spinaway)," he said. "She's a filly who has carried her condition really well. Now having run three times, she looks fantastic."
In the 6 1/2-furlong test for juvenile fillies, Pletcher stablemate Stainlessstumbled out of the gate as longshot Di Maria tried to take the early lead but was beat out by Pure Silver, who assumed control. With jockey John Velazquez aboard, Pure Silver led the field of eight through quick fractions of :22.44 and :45.48 for the first half-mile.
Limited View, a last-out maiden winner at Laurel Park in her only other start, began to pressure the leader around the turn, but Pure Silver shook off the challenge, took off down the stretch, and opened up on the field. Southampton Way launched a mild bid down the middle of the track but was nowhere close to catching the runaway winner and had to settle for second. Wall of Compassion checked in third, and Stainless recovered from her stumble to finish fourth.
The final time over the fast track was 1:17.22. Sly Roxy, Limited View, Proportionality, and Di Maria completed the order of finish.
"We expected to be on the lead," Velazquez said. "We did break very well. I used her a little bit to make sure I was going to be close to the pace. Once I got to the spot I wanted to be in, I just waited there. She did a good job settling around the turn and finished up really well."
Off as the 8-5 favorite, Pure Silver returned $5.40, $3.30, and $2.90.
Pure Silver made her debut June 22 at Belmont Park, another front-running effort she won by 1 1/2 lengths. She picked up a black-type win in her next start, the July 16 Lynbrook Stakes at Belmont, where she lost her footing at the start, traveled two-wide on the backstretch, and won by 1 1/2 lengths. She now has earnings of $217,200.
Bred in New York by her owner Twin Creeks Farm, Pure Silver is out of the stakes-winning Forest Wildcat mare Jehan. The filly was a $125,000 purchase by McMahon & Hill Bloodstock, as agent, at this year’s Ocala Breeders’ Sales March sale of 2-year-olds in training. Twin Creeks also raced her sire, a multiple graded stakes winner and earner of more than $1.2 million.
Pure Silver is the first graded stakes winner for Mission Impazible, a current second-crop sire at Sequel Stallions New York who stood for a $7,500 fee in 2017. |
