Mean Mary makes it two in a row in La Prevoyante

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Alex Campbell, Jr., homebred Mean Mary made it two in a row on Saturday when she took the field from flags fall to that’s all in the $200,000 La Prevoyante Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park.

Breaking from post 4 under Luis Saez as the 5/2 second choice, Mean Mary was given an uncontested early lead and took full advantage. Slowing the pace down to her own accord, Mean Mary posted fractions of :25.48, :51.60, 1:17.34, and 1:42.59 for the opening mile.

Rounding the far turn still in hand, Mean Mary hit top gear and blasted off sharply, putting daylight between her and her foes in an instant. The Graham Motion trainee cleared away to win by 5 lengths under a hand ride, completing the 1 1/2-mile marathon event over the firm turf course in 2:28.36.

“She just broke by herself right there and she was comfortable,” Saez said. “I looked behind me at the 3/8 (pole) and there were two or three guys I saw right there, and I still felt comfortable because I had a lot of horse. I knew she was going to take off when I came to the stretch. She switched leads and she made it look easy.”

Lady Paname, the 6/5 favorite, stalked from a few lengths back early but couldn’t capitalize when the real running began and settled for second. Touriga, Raining Lemons, and War Cabinet all rallied from the rear to take third, fourth, and fifth, respectively.

La Australiana, Simply Beautiful, Kelsey’s Cross, Get Explicit, and Latest Version completed the order of finish.

Mean Mary’s win followed a strong local effort last out while going 1 1/8 miles against allowance/optional claiming foes over a good turf course. The 4-year-old daughter of Scat Daddy now carries a record of 5-3-1-0 with $201,000 earned.

“Luis came into the paddock and he said he was going to ask her away from the gate,” said Motion. “I said, ‘Luis, you’re not going to have to ask her, she’s going to be on the lead.’ He did a beautiful job and he slowed it right down. I was feeling pretty good because I didn’t think the distance would be a problem.”

Mean Mary returned $7.40 to win, $3.60 to place, and $2.80 to show. Lady Paname brought back $3 to place and $2.40 to show, while Touriga paid $4 to show.