After rattling off three consecutive wins on the Gulfstream Park turf, Mean Mary took her show on the road and kept her win streak rolling with a wire-to-wire victory in the $250,000 New York Stakes (G2T) June 27 at Belmont Park.
The win covering 1 1/4 miles on the inner turf course was Mean Mary's first start in three months. The 4-year-old Scat Daddy filly bred and owned by Alex Campbell Jr. won the March 28 Orchid Stakes Presented by Rood & Riddle (G3T), the Jan. 25 La Prevoyante Stakes (G3T), and a Dec. 22 allowance optional claiming event.
Mean Mary returned to the work tab at trainer Graham Motion's Fair Hill base in early May.
"You always wonder a little bit about Florida—did she just suit that course? But this is so different than running at Gulfstream. The way she did it was pretty impressive," Motion said. "I worried a little bit. You always worry a little bit with that much time away and I wanted to keep her fresh, but she also had to be fit.
"The course took a little bit of rain, but it's so different than what she had been running on. I think she might be one of those horses where you don't have to make too many excuses."
Mean Mary, the 6-5 favorite, took command early and set fractions of :25.11, :51.55, 1:16.28, and 1:39.21 through a mile under Luis Saez. At that point, she had drawn away to a 2 1/2-length lead. Saez glanced under his shoulder down the stretch and saw there was no threat to Mean Mary's lead as the filly continued to open up. They hit the finish line 5 1/4 lengths in front.
The final time was 2:01.85 on firm turf.
"I had a lot of confidence in her today. She always does everything right. Today, she was just galloping," Saez said. "The track feels good today, and I think the rain helped her. She was super relaxed, even more so than her last race. She feels better now than she did last time."
My Sister Nat rallied from last of six to finish second. Feel Glorious, Call Me Love, Fools Gold, and Valiance completed the order of finish.
Bred in Kentucky, Mean Mary is the second of three foals out of the Dynaformer mare Karlovy Vary, another Campbell homebred, who won the Central Bank Ashland Stakes (G1). All three foals are winners.
The New York Stakes boosted Mean Mary's record to five wins and a second in seven starts. She has earned $396,160.
