Party Girl made a winning track debut to claim the Clásico Florentino Ameghino
The Stud RDI homebred made her debut appearance at La Plata a winning one, capturing Sunday's feature event following an exhilarating finish alongside Mailena. It marked her fourth career victory and her third over 1200 meters—a trip that appears tailor-made for her qualities
LA PLATA, Buenos Aires (Special for Turf Diario).— Party Girl had never set foot at La Plata, but she needed just one afternoon to make herself right at home. The Stud RDI mare captured Sunday's Clásico Florentino Ameghino(1200 m, dirt), the feature race on the program in El Bosque, following a razor-thin finish in which she managed to edge Maylena (Que Vida Buena) by a nose.
The run was far from smooth for the daughter of Outstrip. For much of the journey, she raced out wide, giving away precious ground, though she enjoyed the advantage of always galloping with a clear path free of traffic to impede her rally. Up front, Let Me Dance (Le Blues) capitalized on her natural speed and, upon entering the home stretch, built a commanding advantage that for several strides gave the distinct impression she might steal the race.
Party Girl then began to chip away at the margin on the outside, while further back Maylena also hit her top gear to join the fray with intent. The pacesetter dug in until reaching the final 100 meters, where the relentless pressure applied by her two pursuers finally caused her to buckle. Party Girl and Maylena struck past Let Me Dance nearly in unison and stormed toward the wire in an uncompromising duel.
Patience was required before certainty arrived. Party Girl dropped her head right on the line to secure victory by the narrowest of margins, crowning her inaugural outing at the La Plata oval in the finest possible fashion. The final time for the 1200 meters was 1m11s81/100.
The outcome also served to confirm a rather evident trend in her racing profile: turn-sprinting appears to be the exact dynamic in which she produces her peak performances.
This victory marked the fourth career triumph for Party Girl in 11 starts, and her third over 1200 meters—a metric that clearly outlines her ideal trip.
The Stud RDI homebred arrived off a sixth-place effort, 7 1/2 lengths behind Stormy Summer (Nicholas), in the Clásico General Las Heras (G3) over 1400 meters at San Isidro. She had previously contested various black-type events without making a major splash, with her best showing at that level being a third-place finish in the Clásico Cooperativa de Criadores de SPC Ltda. (G3) at Palermo.
The shift in venues and, above all, the return to 1200 meters ultimately presented a far more favorable opportunity. Adrián Giannetti rode a masterful race in the irons, while trainer Alfredo Gaitán Dassié was responsible for conditioning her to perfection.
It is also noteworthy that her maiden stakes triumph at La Plata materialized on dirt, considering a pedigree heavily slanted toward turf. Party Girl is a daughter of Outstrip (Exceed and Excel) out of a Vettori (Machiavellian) mare, hailing from a distinguished Brazilian dam line that in Argentina boasts top-tier names such as G1 winner Runforthedoe (Our Emblem) and stakes winner Segura Piao (Our Emblem). But the racetrack always retains the final say.
Party Girl journeyed to El Bosque for the first time, raced wide, had to chase down a runaway leader, and then withstand the fierce closing charge of Maylena. Dipping her head at the precise instant proved just enough to claim the Ameghino and confirm that whenever 1200 meters is on the menu, she delivers her finest performance.
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