Super Majesty Wins Grade III, $100,000 Dogwood

Sep 20, 2015 LNJ Foxwoods' Super Majesty Wins 2015 Dogwood. Credit: Churchill Downs/Reed Palmer Photography Darren Rogers

Southern California invader Super Majesty led nearly every step of the way in Saturday night’s 40^th running of the $100,000 Dogwood Stakes (Grade III) at Churchill Downs to beat Chide by 1 ¾ lengths and give owners Larry, Nanci and Jamie Roth of LNJ Foxwoods their first graded stakes win.

Super Majesty, the 6-5 favorite in a field of 12 3-year-old fillies, grabbed the lead after a quarter mile in :22.78, clicked off a half-mile in :45.58 and finished strong down the stretch to run seven furlongs over a fast track in a stakes record 1:23.02 for the Hall of Fame duo of trainer Jerry Hollendorfer and jockey Alex Solis.

Pleasant Tales and Florida-based Husaca attempted to pressure Super Majesty early but the bay filly kicked clear for a length advantage down the backstretch and drew away under right-handed urging from Solis down the stretch.

“I talked to Jerry this morning and we didn’t think anybody had the speed that she has,” Solis said. “They didn’t. I’m very fortunate to ride a filly like her. She has a lot of talent.”

A $3,000 supplemental entry to the Dogwood, Super Majesty returned $4.20, $3 and $2.60 to her backers. Chide, the 5.90-1 third betting choice, rallied from behind under Shaun Bridgmohan to get second and paid $4.80 and $3.40. Sweet Swinging, ridden by Channing Hill, got up for third and returned $9.40.

Kathballu, Huasca, Street Song, Heart’s Song, I’m a Looker, All Day Alice, Zeven, Sweet Success and Pleasant Tales completed the order of finish.

The victory was worth $57,660 for the Roths and boosted Super Majesty’s earnings to $133,860.

“To have our first graded stakes win come at Churchill Downs is just amazing,” Larry Roth said. “It’s just incredible. We have a great team.”

Super Majesty, a daughter of 2010 Kentucky Derby champ Super Saver that was purchased for $400,000 at the 2014 Fasig-Tipton Florida Sale under the advice of Solis’ son and blockstock agent Alex Solis II as well as Jason Litt, has won three of her four starts and has been favored every time.

She suffered her lone defeat Aug. 23 as the heavy 1-5 favorite on Aug. 23 when she was edged by a nose in a two-turn, one-mile affair at Del Mar. Prior to that, Super Majesty won by 15 ¼ lengths in a first-level allowance/optional claiming race at Los Alamitos in July.

“I still think she can route,” Solis said. “She’s lightly-raced and still maturing. Also, the way she moves gives me the idea that she can route, too.”

Bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm LLC, Super Majesty is out of the 1994 Kentucky Derby winner Go for Gin mare Gins Majesty.

The Dogwood was the feature race on an 11-race “Downs After Dark Presented by Stella Artois Jack Daniel’s” nighttime racing program that attracted 14,786 fans.

DOGWOOD QUOTES

ALEX SOLIS, jockey of SUPER MAJESTY (winner): “I talked to (trainer) Jerry (Hollendorfer) this morning and we didn’t think anybody had the speed that she has. They didn’t.

“I still think she can route. She’s lightly-raced and still maturing. Also, the way she moves gives me the idea that she can route, too.

“I’m very fortunate to ride a filly like her. She has a lot of talent.”

NANCI ROTH, co-owner of SUPER MAJESTY (winner): “This was our first graded stakes win!”

LARRY ROTH, co-owner of SUPER MAJESTY (winner): “To have our first graded stakes win come at Churchill Downs is just amazing. It’s just incredible. We have a great team in (bloodstock agents) Alex (Solis II), Jason (Litt) and our daughter (Jamie) who is not here but is an integral part of the team with my wife (Nanci) and myself. It’s just incredible.”

AL STALL JR., trainer of CHIDE (second): “She has a nice punch going around one turn. We’re just trying to figure out if she’s a one-turn or two-turn filly. We still don’t know. But we were happy that she showed up. She was looking and acting like she was going to run a nice race. So we’re waiting for our turn.”

SHAUN BRIDGMOHAN, jockey of CHIDE (second): “She tried hard. She was coming out of those route races she got a little bit farther back than I would have liked. I had to ride her to get her going, but she was coming and was catching that filly (winner Super Majesty) at the end.”

DALE ROMANS, trainer of SWEET SWINGIN (third): “I think she’s a very nice filly that has a bright future. I was very pleased with the way she ran.”

CHANNING HILL, jockey on SWEET SWINGIN (third): “She ran real well. Down the backside she took a little bit to get into the race. You know in those seven-eighths races they all want to go pretty quick. But she surprised me a little bit when I tipped her out and she really sprinted. She just got beat by a really nice horse (winner Super Majesty) and the second horse (Chide). The winner is going to be a really, really nice filly. But this filly is coming out of some really good races and she just had to run her race to run that kind of race. I was really impressed and she galloped out really well.”

JULIEN LEPAROUX, jockey of KATHBALLU (fourth): “She ran good. Coming to the quarter pole I thought she had a chance to win, but she flattened out at the end a little bit. But she still ran a big race and she tried hard, so that was good.”