Real Solution had the worst of it in last Saturday’s Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic, finishing sixth. — but that didn’t deter voters in the Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred/The Racing Biz Top Midlantic-bred Poll, who made him the poll leader once again. He earned 42 points to hold off Miss Behaviour, who had 35.
Real Solution has run back-to-back subpar races in Grade 1 company, but voters value his Grade 1 win and placing earlier this season.
The poll’s two biggest movers were Miss Behaviour, who rose from sixth to second, and Favorite Tale, who rose from the also-ran category to fifth. Both are Pennsylvania-breds.
Three-year-old Miss Behaviour, second in three consecutive graded events (including two at Saratoga), delivered a flashy win in the Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks to propel her rise in the poll. Bred and owned by Cal MacWilliam and Neil Teitelbaum, the daughter of Jump Start out of the stakes-placed Successful Appeal mare Successful Romance is trained by Phil Schoenthal. She has won two of six starts this season and earned $548,000.
On the same day that Miss Behaviour scored at Charles Town, Favorite Tale, also three, did the same thing, motoring to an impressive win in the Grade 3 Gallant Bob at Parx Racing. Favorite Tale, by Tale of the Cat out of the graded stakes-placed Grindstone mare Tricky Elaine, is trained by Guadalupe Preciado for owner PJG Stable. He was bred by Paul Conaway. He has won five of 10 starts this year and earned $369,826.
Maryland-bred Ben’s Cat, second in the last poll, dipped to fourth after a third-place finish, as the favorite, in the Laurel Dash last Saturday.
The list of seven runners includes four horses bred in Pennsylvania, two bred in Maryland, and one bred in Virginia. Five males and two females are among the top seven; three are three-year-olds.
This marked the thirteenth edition of the poll.
Horses that have run in 2014 and were bred in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, and the Carolinas were eligible.
POLL LEADERS IN ACTION THIS WEEKEND
- None.
POLL RESULTS
Miss Behaviour takes the Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks. Photo by Jeff Brammer.
TOP MIDLANTIC-BRED HORSES
- Real Solution (42) — Pennsylvania
- Miss Behaviour (35) — Pennsylvania
- The Big Beast (32) — Maryland
- Ben’s Cat (29) — Maryland
- Favorite Tale (18) — Pennsylvania
- Princess of Sylmar (13) — Pennsylvania
- Valid (13) — Virginia
Others receiving votes: Thank You Marylou, Daring Dancer, Geeky Gorgeous, Giovanni Boldini, Delaunay
Participating Voters: Ted Black (freelance writer), Michael Campbell (Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association of New Jersey), Cindy Deubler (Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred), Linda Dougherty (freelance), Debbie Easter (Virginia Thoroughbred Association), Anne Frederick (Maryland Horse Breeders Association), Cricket Goodall (Maryland Horse Breeders Association), Jim Hague (freelance), Nick Hahn (freelance), Jeff Nations (freelance), Kate Painter (West Virginia Thoroughbred Breeders Association), Vinnie Perrone (freelance), Frank Petramalo (Virginia Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association), David Richardson (Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association), John Scheinman (freelance), Dan Tordjman (freelance), Frank Vespe (The Racing Biz), Bill Watson (freelance), Lydia Williams (freelance), Bobby Zen (freelance).
Note — Not all participating voters will vote in every poll.
(Featured image, of Real Solution, by Courtney Heeney/NYRA.)
