Lady of Fifty is Nifty in Hirsch Stakes

Lady of Fifty picked a great time to claim her first career Grade I victory. After running third earlier this spring in the Grade I Vanity Stakes at Hollywood Park, the three-year-old After Market filly rallied in deep stretch under Cory Nakatani to capture the Grade I Clement L. Hirsch Stakes on Saturday. Not only did she put another $180,000 in the bank, the race was a ‘Win and You’re In’ event to the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, meaning that Lady of Fifty has now punched her ticket to the BC Ladies Classic.

Goes five wide to take it at the wire

Going off as an 11-1 afterthought, Lady of Fifty raced at the back of the pack throughout, sitting eighth of nine to the 3/4 –pole, and seventh into the stretch of the 1 1/16 miles race. But jockey Nakatani had her saving ground all the way, and when wheeled out five wide for the drive to the wire, Lady of Fifty had plenty left in the tank, and hit the line 1 ½ lengths in front of More Chocolate, with the UK-bred Byrama another ½-length back in third.

Include Me Out falters as the favorite

As well as things worked out for Lady of Fifty, it was a different story for even-money favorite Include Me Out. The five-year-old mare, who had finished third in the 2012 BC Ladies Classic, and who was coming off a win in the Desert Stormer Handicap in her first race since the Breeders’ Cup, never settled in the Hirsch and finished second-last in the field. With the win, Lady of Fifty picked up her seventh win, to go with one second and five thirds in 16 lifetime starts.  Her earnings now top the half million-dollar mark.