Caramel Swirl Rallies Late To Win Raven Run At Keeneland
Caramel Swirl (foreground) beats Joy's Rocket to the wire in the Grade 2 Raven Run at Keeneland.
Seventh in the field of eleven early, Caramel Swirl did not let traffic stop her from making a bid for the lead in the Grade 2 Raven Run. Over a fast track at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., the daughter of Union Rags went five-wide around the far turn to find racing room and outlast a challenge from Joy's Rocket to win by a head.
Breaking cleanly from post eight, Junior Alvarado positioned Caramel Swirl toward the back of the pack early behind the leader Strong Silent and Cilla in second. Three-wide on the backstretch, traffic forced Alvarado to take his filly even wider on the far turn to find running room in the Keeneland straight. As Cilla took over the lead in the early stretch, Caramel Swirl and Joy's Rocket rallied to her outside. The two were head to head as they passed Cilla in late stretch, Caramel Swirl eking out a short lead as they approached the finish line.
At the wire, Caramel Swirl held the advantage over Joy's Rocket with Cilla in third. The final time for the seven furlongs was 1:23.42.
Recommended for You
Caramel Swirl paid $8.60, $5.60, and $4.40. Joy's Rocket paid $19.60 and $10.40. Cilla paid $7.40.
“It was a little tougher than when she won by 10 (lengths) to break her maiden here (in April), that was for sure, but obviously with the step-up in company and class – (jockey) Junior (Alvarado) gave her a super ride. She showed true determination and grit and heart down the lane. Made it interesting, but we’re happy to be here in the Winner’s Circle,” Godolphin's Jimmy Bell said after the Raven Run.
“She is just very honest. She’s a very classy filly. She does everything you need to do in the race. Today we were in a little tough spot on the backside, and I needed to get a little bit out of that spot because I wasn’t really comfortable there, and she helped me to get out of there. Then at the same time, when I decided to pick it up a little bit to stay in contention, she was there for me. Like I say, she just really makes my job easier,” jockey Junior Alvarado told the Keeneland Press Office after the race.
Bred in Kentucky by owner Godolphin, Caramel Swirl is out of the Smart Strike mare Caramel Snap. She is trained by Bill Mott. With her win the G2 Raven Run, the 3-year-old filly has three wins in seven starts in 2021 for a lifetime record of 9-3-3-1 and career earnings of $317,300.
