Although she broke behind her seven rivals, Balletto never had to panic. She put Nakatani in a good stalking position inside, as J P Jewel sparred with Darn That Girl on the front end of a :23; :46 1/5 and 1:10 3/5 pace. Sis City popped out on the lead in the stretch, as Ready's Gal came wide with jockey John Velazquez and Balletto came up the rail. Sis City drifted out to the middle of the track, then came back inside again, but by that time, Balletto had a clear lead and got home in 1:43 2/5. Ready's Gal continued to close and got second by three-quarters of a length over Sis City. Play With Fire, Shebelongstoyou, Darn That Girl, J P Jewel and Comacina trailed.
"She was an old professional," Nakatani said of Balletto. "I pointed her in the right direction and saved ground. I moved her back to the inside when that horse (Sis City) ran a little bit green ahead of me. I had to shift her to the inside and kept her busy through the last sixteenth of the race. It showed me that she is really guts and she is an 'old' pro"
As well as Balletto ran, trainer Tom Albertrani was noncommittal as to future plans. "She usually breaks like that all the time, so that wasn't a concern at all," Albertrani said. "She's broken slow in every race. Today, she broke how I expected she would and everything worked out that way I hoped it would. I was a little concerned at the half-mile pole, but Corey had plenty of room by the time she was ready to make a run. It looked like Sis City found another gear late. I was just hoping to see Balletto run a big race today. "Whatever happens after this, we'll make a decision later on. We have no definite plans at the moment. She's probably the first UAE-bred to win a Grade 1 in the states."
Both trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey John Velazquez were upset about Sis City's tour of the stretch and felt it compromised Ready's Gal's chances "The other horse (Sis City) messed me up," Velazquez said. "Went all the way out, and then went back in again. The other one (Balletto) got through. My momentum was slowed up. The other one got the jump on me." Eibar Coa, jockey of Sis City, saw a positive effort from his filly. "I think she tried really hard," Coa said. "I think she has a lot of talent. He had her really sharp. She just got beat. She was getting tired. It was just her second time going long. She is still learning."