Ms Bad Behavior Wires Ladies Turf

FRANKLIN, KY – After knocking on the door for over a year, Ms Bad Behavior finally broke through on Saturday for her first graded stakes score when she wired the $500,000 Three Chimneys Ladies Turf Stakes (G3) at Kentucky Downs.

Breaking quickly from the far outside post 9 under Jose Ortiz at 7/1 odds, Ms Bad Behavior rushed up to dictate the pace on her own terms. Heading through the far turn, Ortiz allowed Ms Bad Behavior to begin opening up.

Continuing to run clear in the final stages, Ortiz let the Richard Baltas-trained filly cross in hand while 1 1/2 lengths ahead. Ms Bad Behavior completed the mile-long event over the firm turf course in 1:35.25 – just 0.25 seconds off of the track record that Rob ‘n Gin set in 1998.

“I tapped her on the shoulder right out of the gate and she got going pretty quickly,” Ortiz said. “And then when we got to the top of the hill, she put the ears up and was very relaxed going down the hill. I just let her be her, let her get comfortable. And when I asked her to go by the 3/16, she just rebroke.”

Mitchell Road, the even-money favorite, relentlessly tracked the eventual winner from second throughout the running while never being able to capitalize on her positioning. A four-way photo finish for third went to Simply Breathless by a nose over Storm the Hill, with Kallio and Sensitive each a neck behind them. Viva Vegas and Lynne’s Legacy completed the order of finish. Coachwhip was scratched.

Ms Bad Behavior’s win broke a seven-race winless streak against graded foes that included three seconds and improved her overall record to 17-4-7-3. The Ontario-bred 4-year-old daughter of Blame has now earned $501,251 for co-owners Sayjay Racing, Greg Hall, and Brooke Hubbard.

“We gave her a little break after the last race,” said assistant trainer Aime Dollase. “She had run quite a bit, so she needed a well-deserved break. She came back, she trained great, her last few works had been super. Richard had a lot of confidence in her, as did the owners, and they decided to send her out here. We’ve always been trying to get her to that next level because it seemed like she’d always get caught and run second, or she’d hit the board but get there a little late in that last part. But she came back great and has been training lights out. She’s a good filly with a lot of heart and class, and it showed today.”

Ms Bad Behavior returned $16.60 to win, $6.60 to place, and $3.80 to show. Mitchell Road brought back $3.60 to place and $2.60 to show, while Simply Breathless paid $3.60 to show.