A month ago 145th Kentucky Oaks' winning trainer Tom Amoss had not yet decided to enter the race. Yet Serengeti Empress under champion jockey Jose Ortiz aboard upset the proverbial apple cart.
Bellafina, the favorite finished fifth while the Alternation colt held off a late charge from another long-shot Liora to take the Kentucky Oaks. The Winner of the Gr.2 Golden Rod stakes is trained by Wayne M. Catalano. Gr.3 Fantasy Stakes' winner Lady Apple placed third.
Serengeti Empress arrived in Louisville having won a pair of Gr.2 stakes races. But the erstwhile underdog had also finished a disappointing seventh in two other races. Her surge to victory was thoroughly unexpected.
At the start Positive Spirit was bumped and flipped over, causing jockey Manny Franco to roll to the dirt. Both the horse and Franco appeared to come out of the crash okay.
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Race Info:
Distance: 1 1⁄8 miles, Surface: Dirt, Track: Left-handed, Qualification: 3-year-old fillies, Weight: 121 lb (55 kg), Purse: $1.25 million, 1st: $750,000