Churchill Downs Stakes Recap & Quotes: The Fasig-Tipton La Troienne

May 02, 2025 Kevin Kerstein

Alpha Delta Stables’ homebred Raging Sea rallied from off the pace to post a three-quarters of a length victory over Taxed in the 40th running of the $1 million Fasig-Tipton La Troienne (GI) for fillies and mares Friday afternoon with reigning Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna off the board.

Trained by Chad Brown and ridden by Flavien Prat, Raging Sea completed the mile and a sixteenth on the main track in 1:42.91.

Randomized won the race to the first turn in which Thorpedo Anna was jostled in between Randomized and Dorth Vader. Randomized opened a clear lead going into the backstretch with Thorpedo Anna tracking in second.

Those two raced that way to the top of the stretch with Randomized kicked clear and Thorpedo Anna started to fade. Randomized maintained her advantage to deep where her stablemate Raging Sea split horses and pulled clear for the victory.

Making her first start since a runner-up finish to Thorpedo Anna in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff (GI) last fall at Del Mar, Raging Sea is a 5-year-old Kentucky-bred daughter of Curlin out of the Storm Cat mare Stormy Welcome. A winner in eight of 14 starts, Raging Sea now is a two-time Grade I winner.

Raging Sea returned $10.08, $4.88 and $4.30. Taxed, ridden by Rafael Bejarano, returned $18.88 and $14.44 and finished a head in front of Randomized who paid $6.24 to show under Joel Rosario.

It was another three-quarters of a length back to Dorth Vader with Free Like a Girl, Literateand Thorpedo Anna following in order.

FASIG-TIPTON LA TROIENNE QUOTES

Chad Brown (Trainer, Raging Sea, winner) – “I was really looking forward to a little bit of a rematch (from the Breeders’ Cup Distaff) and I was happy that she was able to get up there. She's really etched her own solid career and not just a one off sort of horse so consistency over many years now, all the way back her 2-year-old year, so she's really turned into a solid, solid horse that everyone needs to respect. The pace was slower than we anticipated but Flavien (Prat) did a nice job keeping her in striking distance and responded really well down the stretch.”

Randy Morse (Trainer, Taxed, second) – “She ran unbelievable. I'm so proud of her. I thought we were going to get there.”

Brian Hernandez Jr. (Jockey, Thorpedo Anna, seventh) – “She got bounced around a little around the first turn, but then after that, it all cleared up. We hopped outside of Randomizing and we were having a nice smooth trip from that point, and then at the second turn, when I asked her to go after Randomizing she picked it up a little. Then down the lane, she was just a little tired, and maybe the last race over there at Oaklawn (Apple Blossom) coming back quick today, it took a little steam out of her.”

(Did you feel like that incident around the first turned impacted her?) “No, I don't think so. She was able, you know, the horse on the inside of me, the one horse, Dorth Vader, he took the worst of it just being down in there, getting bounced around. And we took a couple bumps, but then after that, she was on her feet and hopped outside of Randomized. She got the kind of trip we envisioned, but it was just one of those situations where today wasn't her day.”

Kenny McPeek (Trainer, Thorpedo Anna, seventh) – “It looks like they beat her up going into the first turn. I don't know what that was about. I'm shocked like the rest of us.”