Distaff Gets New Contender

- Interesting prep weekend for the Distaff, as one contender solidified her status as one of the favorites, and another one burst on the scene.

We already mentioned the win by Fleet Indian in the Beldame. On Sunday, Patrick Biancone took the Grade 1 Spinster at Keeneland with Asi Siempre, a stakes-winning four-year old daughter of El Prado who had never run on the dirt, real or artificial. She'd had a good Saratoga meet with a restricted stakes win, and a third in the Grade 2 Ballston Spa.

[Owner Martin] Schwartz said he learned that Asi Siempre would run in the Spinster when Biancone told him at Saratoga, "I've got a surprise for you." Biancone had worked several horses together at Turfway, and Asi Siempre had won the mini-race. She was off to Keeneland. [Lexington Herald Reader]

Asi Siempre made a wide move from sixth to win the Spinster, and behind a slow pace too - the first half went in 50.50, whereas a 7500 claimer run around two turns earlier went 47.90. The final 3/8ths were run in 35.77; last eighth in 11.86. Nice effort. But will she replicate it on the Churchill Downs dirt? Biancone said: "Polytrack is halfway between turf and dirt...Most of the time on the turf, there wasn't enough pace for her. But on the dirt or Polytrack, she loves that." [Louisville Courier-Journal]

This is a filly with some interesting breeding. Out of Siempre Asi, a mare by Silver Hawk, she's inbred 3x3 to Sir Ivor, not something I've seen very often. She's also inbred to Hail to Reason, Turn-to, Nearco, and the influential broodmare Cap and Bells, the granddam of Asi Siempre's sire El Prado. This was the first Grade 1 winner of 2006 for the $125,000 stallion.

- According to the Form, no less than five of Asi Siempre's beaten rivals in the Spinster are aiming for the Distaff: Soul Search, Lemons Forever, Happy Ticket, Summerly, and Spun Sugar.