Harper's Corner broke like a rocket out of the starting gate and was never threatened on her way to winning the $200,000 listed Schuylerville Stakes at Saratoga on Friday, July 3.
A maiden winner at Laurel Park in her debut June 12, the dark bay/brown filly is now the first winner and Stakes winner for her freshman sire, Speaker’s Corner.
Overlooked by the bettors and sent off at odds of 12-1, Harper’s Corner outbroke even-money favorite Luminous Beauty and zipped her way through opening fractions of :22.02 and :45.18.
Still comfortably on the lead at the eighth pole, it came down to a two-horse race as Luminous Beauty began to fade, and Voyager emerged out of the pack. Never in any danger of being caught, Harper's Corner widened her advantage to the wire to win easily by five-and-a quarter lengths in a final time of 1:09.96.
Bred in Kentucky by Bishop Racing Inc., Harper's Corner is out the Speightstown mare, Toscana, a half-sister to G3 winner, Nikkis Smartypants (Smarty Jones). In addition to the Schuylerville winner, Toscana is also the dam of Stakes-placed Tenjaku (Kantharos).
Speaker's Corner is by the emerging sire of sires, Street Sense, and won the G1 Carter while posting an impressive 114 Beyer. In fact, in the past six years, only Sovereignty and Flightline have run faster. His seven career triple-digit Beyers include a 109 at three.
