Julio Méndez made the most of his opportunity and guided Water City to another stakes victory at Maroñas

The jockey stepped in at the last minute and delivered a masterful ride, navigating a tricky pace scenario to guide the Cityscape filly to victory in the Clásico Rufino T. Domínguez (L)

At the center of it all was Julio César Méndez, rider of the Argentine-bred Water City / MARONAS

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (Special for Turf Diario).-Approaching her eighth birthday, Water City continues to bring joy to her connections. Just as she did during her early campaign in Argentina, the daughter of Cityscape is now showcasing her class on the Uruguayan turf.

Already a stakes winner at Maroñas thanks to her victory in the Clásico José Serrato (L) back in January, the Haras Firmamento-bred mare struck again Sunday, capturing the Clásico Rufino T. Domínguez (L) over 1200 meters on the turf. In a dramatic finish, she edged fellow Argentine-bred Eureka Springs (Il Campione) by a neck, with the top five finishers separated by just three-quarters of a length.

Racing for Stud Don Leoncio and trained by Aldo L. Hernández, Water City stalked the pace while Eureka Springs set the tempo under pressure from Gata de Oro (The Leopard). Turning for home, Julio César Méndez, a late replacement in the irons, guided his mount toward the inside rail, found running room inside the final furlong, and got up in the shadow of the wire with a sustained rally.

It was a neck back to the brave Eureka Springs, with Cuanto Te Quiero (Posse) a half-head behind in third. Brazilian-bred Watchkentucky (Kentuckian) followed another short margin back, while Abusada (E do Sul) was fifth, beaten just a half-length for it all. Final time was 1:11.24 after early splits of 22.84 and 47.26.

Off at odds of 4.20, Water City rewarded her backers handsomely, while the favored Coni Rye (Marconi), another Argentine import, faded to finish next-to-last.

“It was a beautiful but very tricky race,” said Méndez. “They asked me to try and keep her clear, but halfway down the lane I had to improvise. There was no room, so I dove inside at the 200 and she did the rest. I picked up the mount after Bruno Cheleri, her regular rider, was injured at Las Piedras. They offered her to me just yesterday. I studied her replays, and although I couldn’t stick to the original plan, things just opened up perfectly. I wish Bruno a speedy recovery—he’ll win more stakes with her. Sometimes things go right, sometimes they don’t. Today, everything clicked.”

The win was the 11th of Water City’s career. Before arriving in Uruguay, she tallied 9 victories in Argentina, including the Clásico Círculo de Propietarios de Caballerizas SPC (G3), as well as the Blue Prize, Contraventora, Día de la Soberanía Nacional, and the Handicaps Amsterdam and Court Harwell. A remarkable campaign, and still going strong.