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Heavenly Landing rules wild day at Gulfstream

 

Heavenly Landing, at 19-1, edged La Reine Lionne in the Marshua’s River Stakes to highlight a day of upsets and big payoffs.

 

Heavenly Landing captures the Marshua's River stakes at Gulfstream Park on 1-7-12 nosing out La Reine Lionne and Tapitsfly.
Heavenly Landing captures the Marshua's River stakes at Gulfstream Park on 1-7-12 nosing out La Reine Lionne and Tapitsfly.
Courtney Stafford / Coglianese Photos

Miami Herald Writer

Heavenly Landing surprised her owners who live in Fort Lauderdale and most bettors at Gulfstream Park on Saturday when she rallied from 11th place on the far turn and won the $100,000 Marshua’s River Stakes.

Heavenly Landing, at 19-1, beat La Reine Lionne by a nose, with Tapitsfly another head back in the Grade 3 stakes at 1 1/16 miles on turf.

“It was a step up, and I was not really expecting this,” said John Lally, who with his wife, Louise, owns the 5-year-old Heavenly Landing.

With her first stakes win, Heavenly Landing combined with several other long-shot winners to produce some huge payoffs.

The biggest was in the Rainbow 6, on the last six races, when the one winning ticket paid $414,166.52. The wager is 10 cents-only per combination, with bettors able to have multiple horses in each race.

Heavenly Landing’s two races prior to the Marshua’s River were wins in allowances at 1 1/16 miles on turf at Keeneland and Churchill Downs. But bettors made her a long shot in Saturday’s strong 12-horse field.

Heavenly Landing raced near the back of the pack most of the way under Corey Lanerie, who was in for the race from Fair Grounds in New Orleans.

She was near the inside, amid traffic, entering the stretch. Lanerie then weaved her between horses, and she caught the other two top finishers at the wire and won in 1:41.70.

“It would have been huge just to get second or third, but she found a seam and ran through,” trainer Eddie Kenneally said.

The Lallys have homes in Fort Lauderdale and Lexington, Ky. They race their horses under the name Summerplace Farm.

Saturday’s Payoffs

The winning ticket on the Rainbow 6 was purchased at Northville Downs in Michigan. The bet, with multiple horses, was $1,323.

Gulfstream pays the entire Rainbow 6 pool only on days when there is just one winning ticket. On other days, winning ticket holders divide 60 percent, and 40 percent goes into a carryover pool.

A new Rainbow 6 pool will start Sunday, with Gulfstream putting in $50,000 seed money.

The Pick 5 on the day’s last five races paid $236,144 on a 50-cent bet.

The two payoffs were large even though one of their races was won by 4-5 favorite Discreet Dancer, a highly touted 3-year-old colt trained by Todd Pletcher.

Discreet Dancer won for the second time in two career starts by defeating Neck ’n Neck by 5 1/2 lengths in a one-mile allowance. He won in 1:36.32, fast for a 3-year-old, even though jockey Javier Castellano was not pushing him near the finish. Pletcher said he has “a lot of options,” but that the Holy Bull (Grade 3) at Gulfstream on Jan. 29 might be too soon for Discreet Dancer’s next race.

Sunday’s top races

On Sunday, Gulfstream will have the $60,000 Ocala Stakes at one mile on dirt for Florida-bred fillies and mares 4 years old and up.

All Due Respect and Sweet Repent will highlight a seven-horse field.

Meanwhile, Margano, a full brother of Barbaro, who won the Florida Derby and Kentucky Derby in 2006, is among the likely favorites in the seventh race.

It is a 1 1/16-mile turf allowance for 3-year-olds.

On Dec. 10, Margano won a 1 1/16-mile turf race at Gulfstream for his first career victory.

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