Chu and You put her exceptional speed to good use Sunday at Emerald Downs.
With Juan Gutierrez riding at 119 pounds, Chu and You led every step and scored a dominating 4 ¾-length victory over Strawberry Dawn in the $50,000 Angie C. Stakes for 2-year-old fillies.
Undefeated in two starts for trainer Robbie Baze and owners Mike and Amy Feuerborn, Chu and You ran six furlongs in 1:09.88 and paid $5.40, $2.60 and $2.20. The victory was worth $24,750 and pushed the filly’s earnings to $32,024.
A Washington-bred by You and I-Bronze Charmer, Chu and You is the full sister of Chu and I, who won two stakes and was voted Emerald Downs’ Top Juvenile Male of 2011.
Strawberry Dawn, ridden by Debbie Hoonan at 119 lbs, edged Decatur Princess by a head for second, and paid $2.40 and $2.20. Decatur Princess, the only maiden in the field, rallied for third and paid $4.20.
See My Tail Lites, who raced nearest the winner early, faded in the stretch and finished fourth, while Rosie’s Revenge and Simba’s Sis completed the order of finish.
Tinkerbelle Tops, the second choice on the morning line, was scratched earlier in the day.
Hustled to the lead from the No. 2 post-position, Chu and You set fractions of :21.85, :44.89 and :57.05, opening a three-length cushion into the lane.
“I had a lot of speed under me and I just tried to save the horse for the last part,” said Gutierrez, the meet’s leading rider with 71 wins. “She’s a nice filly. I had three horses in this race that I had to choose from. This time, I chose the right one.”
Hoonan said Strawberry Dawn, 1-1-0 in two career starts, encountered trouble on the backstretch.
“She’s a game, classy filly,” Hoonan said of Strawberry Dawn. “She didn’t turn a hair in the paddock and had no issues in the gate. We didn’t have a perfect trip. It was tight at the five-sixteenths pole, and we bounced off the rail, but she recovered in one stride.
“Like most good ones, she doesn’t pull early and just settles in. We just ran out of racetrack.”
The next stakes for 2-year-old fillies is the $50,000 Barbara Shinpoch Stakes at 6 ½ furlongs on Sunday, August 25.
NOTES: Jockey Jennifer Whitaker and trainer Howard Belvoir teamed to win three races Sunday*the third with Spending ($9.60), the sixth with Bad Boy K ($10.20) and the 10th with Harbor Star ($4.80)*Whitaker and Hoonan continue the battle for top all-time female rider at Emerald Downs, with Hoonan clinging to a 427-424 lead*Eliska Kubinova and Javier Matias rode two winners each Sunday*With the 75-day meeting two-thirds complete, it appears the jockey and trainer races are destined for photo finishes. Two-time defending champion Frank Lucarelli leads newcomer Jeff Metz 29-28 in the trainers’ standings while defending champion Gutierrez leads newcomer Isaias Enriquez 71-70 in the jockeys’ standings. Rocco Bowen and David G. Lopez are tied for third with 38 wins each*Trainers Margo Lloyd and David Ratko both saddled their first winners of the meet Sunday, Lloyd scoring with I Was Made for You ($10.20) in the opener and Ratko with Red Colt Fortyvive ($4.20) in race five*Lloyd, of course, figures to have a top contender with Stryker Phd in the $200,000 Longacres Mile (G3) on Sunday, August 18*Nominations to the Longacres Mile close midnight Sunday, and will be released Monday morning* Washington-bred Until You ($22.60) returned from Southern California and turned in a scorching victory in Sunday’s $18,000 sub-feature, running six furlongs in 1:08.87 under Javier Matias for trainer David Martinez and owner/breeder Coal Creek Farm*Bowen was suspended two days, Sunday, August 11, and Friday, August 16, for causing interference on Full Service in Saturday’s 10th race*Live racing resumes Friday with first post 6:45 p.m. It’s the biggest week of the season for 3-year-olds, with the $65,000 Washington Oaks for 3-year-old fillies on Saturday and the $65,000 Emerald Downs Derby for 3-year-old colts & geldings on Sunday*Gosailgo, upset winner of the Boeing Handicap, competes in the $50,000 British Columbia Cup Distaff Handicap Monday at Hastings Racecourse. The Distaff is one of six stakes on the special B.C. Cup card.
