The Grade 1 Gazelle featured 3-year-old fillies traveling 1 1/8 miles on the main track at Belmont Park. Just five started in this $250,000 event, with Leave Me Alone the 0.95-1 favorite. As expected, jockey Kent Desormeaux sent the favorite to set the early pace through a half in 46.67 and 3/4 in 1:10.94, with Yolanda B. Too contesting the lead to her outside. Early in the stretch, 2-1 second choice In The Gold, who had stalked them in third early, responded under the whip of jockey Gary Stevens, and ran by the pacesetters to draw 2 1/4 lengths clear at the line, in a time of 1:49.75. It was a length back from Leave Me Alone to Yolanda B. Too in third.
Results Chart from DRF
Winning trainer Nick Zito said, "I was devastated when the (Dancing Edie) didn't break. I thought we would be in a lot of trouble. Everything worked out good, though. Gary (Stevens) worried me a little bit because he was just like `The Ice Man,' waiting and waiting. When he swung her out, she excelled." Asked how he would prep In The Gold for the Breeders' Cup Distaff, Zito added, "If I wanted another race, I would probably have to run her against older horses. But she might really be coming around now, so I would like to try it that way -- going in fresh with no other prep."
Winning jockey Gary Stevens said, "She was a completely different filly today. Nick (Zito) told me she had been 'in season' for a long time. She's not now. Warming up, she was very aggressive. Today, she broke sharp and just took me around there. I was very confident."
Eric Kruljac, trainer of beaten favorite and second place finisher Leave Me Alone said, "She didn't have the same turn of foot; it was a different track today and a different race than the Test. She was a little rank in the holding barn. Kent (Desormeaux) said the track was heavy and laboring. She plugged away all the way to the 1/8 pole, but just couldn't answer Nick's horse. We'll ship her back to Santa Anita."
On to the Man O'War won by Better Talk Now
On to the Garden City Breeders' Cup won by Luas Line
Back to the Woodward Stakes won by Saint Liam
