Long shot wires field in Black-Eyed Susan
Javier Castellano thought he knew exactly how the Black-Eyed Susan was going to pan out.
He couldn’t have been happier about being so wrong.
Castellano, aboard Keen Pauline, broke to the lead from the No. 9 post and charged to a wire-to-wire upset Friday, her second winning effort in six career races.
A 15-1 long shot, Kentucky-bred Keen Pauline covered the 1 1/8-mile course in 1:50.46 at Pimlico Race Course to beat Include Betty by 2 3/4 lengths.
Ahh Chocolate finished third, a halflength ahead of Danessa Deluxe in the $250,000, Grade 2 race for 3-year-old fillies.
“You have to take advantage when anything happens in a race,” Castellano said. “I didn’t expect to be on the lead. I saw a lot of speed in the race. My horse broke so well out of the gate, I dictated the pace and I enjoyed the ride.”
Keen Pauline paid $32.80, $10.80 and $5.80. Her previous finishes this year were third and fourth. The $150,000 purse for winner compared quite favorably to her previous career earnings — a mere $30,932.
In the Derby, Dortmund set the pace through moderate fractions, running the first half-mile in 47.34 seconds, with Firing Line and American Pharoah right behind him. They finished within three lengths of each other. On Saturday, Divining Rod, who skipped the Derby, is among those with early speed. If he prompts quicker early fractions, American Pharoah and Dortmund — with inside posts — might not enjoy the same comfortable rhythm they had two weeks ago. If that happens, a closer to watch could be Danzig Moon, who finished fifth in the Derby.