Michael Schrader's Robin Sparkles made every pole a winning one under Hall of Famer Javier Castellano in the $200,000 Caress Stakes (G3T) July 23 at Saratoga Race Course.
Trained by Bruce Brown, Robin Sparkles arrived at her second graded test, a 5 1/2-furlong sprint over the Mellon turf for older fillies and mares, from a third-place finish behind speedy returning rival Bout Time in the June 25 Goldwood Stakes at Monmouth Park.
The 5-year-old daughter of Elusive Quality broke sharply and was hustled from post 6 by Castellano, establishing the lead as post-time favorite Caravel was off slow and settled on the rail in the middle of the 10-horse field through an opening quarter-mile in :21.54 over the firm turf.
As Bout Time gave chase and tired to the outside of Robin Sparkles, Caravel and Miss J McKay had traffic troubles and were forced to steady with the field approaching the turn. The ground-saving closer Souper Sensational swung widest of all exiting the turn and made her bid for the lead, while Robin Sparkles maintained her advantage by three lengths in midstretch.
Robin Sparkles began to come back to the field under urging from Castellano, and Souper Sensational loomed under a strong ride from Dylan Davis and gained with every stride. Though Lady Edith provided another threat down the center of the lane, Robin Sparkles fended off the furious bid from Souper Sensational by a head in a final time of 1:01.98.
Lady Edith finished third, a half-length behind Souper Sensational and a neck ahead of her troubled stablemate Miss J McKay. Star Devine, Bout Time, Kept Waiting, Tobys Heart, and Caravel completed the order of finish.
Just three-quarters of a length separated the top four finishers, and the front-to-back, the field was apart by 8 1/2 lengths.
Bred in New York by Hibiscus Stables, Robin Sparkles paid $44 on a $2 win ticket and increased her earnings to $530,668. Her record improved to 9-2-3 from 16 starts.
Brown said it was rewarding to see Robin Sparkles make the grade after some setbacks last year.
"Last year, she had some bad luck and different things going on. She was very in-and-out as far as how she was doing, but she's really come back better and better each start," Brown said. "The last race was down in Monmouth, and that was a suicidal kind of pace, but she bounced out of it real good and has been eating the bottom out of the feed tub and doing great."
Robin Sparkles is out of the Dehere mare My Sparky, who has three winners out of three foals to start.
She was a $30,000 purchase by trainer Linda Rice from the Indian Creek consignment to the 2018 New York Bred Yearlings Sale at Fasig-Tipton. Two years after Rice's purchase, she began her career with Brown as her trainer.
