Ontario Bred is Dazzling in Grade 3 Royal Delta Stakes

Miller Racing’s DAZZLING MOVE, purchased privately last month, paid immediate dividends for her new connections by running down favoured Grand Job in deep stretch and edging clear to a three-quarter-length victory in Saturday’s $165,000 Royal Delta (G3) at Gulfstream Park.

The 35th running of the 1 1/16-mile Royal Delta for older fillies and mares honours the three-time champion that won 12 of 22 starts including Gulfstream’s 2013 Sabin (G3) – renamed in 2015 for the Hall of Fame mare.

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Ridden by Dylan Davis, Dazzling Move ($9.20) covered the distance in 1:45.08 over a fast main track to earn her first career stakes victory in her graded debut.

She earned an 84 Beyer Speed Figure according to Daily Racing Form. The filly was previously owned by Sonata Stable and trained by Michael Trombetta. It was thought she might come to Canada in 2024 for the Woodbine season, but she never raced past one mile and stayed on the dirt in the U.S.

“This is big. To already win a Grade 3 on the dirt, everything else is a bonus now,” Joseph said. “There was no plan after this, basically. We’ll try to keep her to two turns and go from there.”

Multiple stakes winner Intrepid Daydream, one of three Joseph-trained horses in the race, was intent on the lead and sent from the gate by jockey Edwin Gonzalez, but outrun to the front by Grand Job, the 4-5 favourite that won each of her two North American starts last year by 14 ¼ combined lengths.

Jockey Junior Alvarado kept Grand Job in the clear two wide while running the opening quarter-mile in 22.81 seconds, with 30-1 longshot Intrepid Daydream racing second on the rail. Davis was unhurried sitting behind the embattled duo, who went a half-mile in 46.21, and moved up to second leaving the far turn after six furlongs in 1:10.98.

Grand Job straightened for home in command and began to pull away in mid-stretch and appeared on the way to victory, but Dazzling Move had more left and continued to close under Davis’ urging for her fourth win and first beyond one mile in 15 starts. Autumn Evening, trained by fellow four-time Royal Delta winner and Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, closed with aplomb to get third.

“[Intrepid Daydream] was going to make the lead and Junior didn’t want to let her make the lead, and he kind of put her tight down the backside. I think that kind of cost him, pace scenario-wise,” Joseph said. “I thought we had the run of the race and then at the quarter pole I thought we were done. I was like, ‘Geez, we still can’t beat that horse.’ When she dug in the last sixteenth I thought she had a chance to get it done and when I saw Todd’s horse closing I was like, ‘I hope she doesn’t run both of us down.’ Thank God she was able to hold on.”

Dazzling Move had placed twice in six prior stakes attempts and was most recently fourth facing older horses in the Dec. 26 Rampart at Gulfstream for previous trainer Mike Trombetta. Owner Myron Miller consulted with Joseph before pulling the trigger on a private purchase of the Not This Time filly.

“Give a ton of credit to Trombetta. We’ve only had her 19 days,” Joseph said. “She was up for sale and I told Myron, ‘Buy her, and if everything goes right we can go in the Royal Delta,’ but everything had to be aligned. We were able to get two works into her.

“We bought her to try two turns. We didn’t know if she could go two turns, but she had won a one-turn mile three times and never went two turns on the dirt. And she ran once on the grass and it wasn’t a bad run,” he added. “With horses you always try things that haven’t been done, and it worked out.”

PEDIGREE NOTES

Dazzling Move is by Not This Time, who also sired Risen Star Stakes (G2) winner Magnitude on Saturday. Dazzling Move’s dam is Lady Liam, by Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) winner Saint Liam. Lady Liam won one of five races on the track and she is a half-sister to two stakes winners, Angel Trumpet and Lakeside Cup.

Lady Liam has produced five previous foals to race including three winners. Dazzling Move was bought back for $85,000 as a yearling by Korona who then sold her privately to Julie Davies. Davies sold her for $135,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Spring two-year-old sale in 2023. Sonata stable was the buyer.

Lady Liam has a three-year-old filly by Army Mule co-owned by Canadian Rick Mah.

Dazzling Move has four wins from 15 starts and earnings of $258,547.

Korona is also the breeder of 2024 King’s Plate winner Caitlinhergrtness.

~ with files from Gulfstream Park media