Bivian B was the favorite in Friday’s sixth race at Ellis Park, while Nana’s Girl was the longest shot on the board in the field of ten 2-year-old fillies. Bivian B was ridden by meet-leader Edgar Morales, while Nana’s Girl was ridden by Carlos Esquilin, who has one win but several seconds at huge odds as he seeks to gain traction on the Kentucky circuit after leaving Puerto Rico in the wake of the devastating hurricane.
But at the end of five-eighths of a mile and a superb stretch duel, all that separated Bivian B and Nana’s Girl was a neck, with the 6-5 favorite edging by in the final strides over the 53-1 shot in the first start for both horses. The fillies have another close tie: Both were named for special people who died last year.
Bivian B was named for trainer John Hancock’s mother, Bivian B. Hancock, the matriarch of the prominent Henderson, Ky., horse family and who was revered in the community as as caring bus driver in the school system for a half-century. Bivian B is co-owned by Hancock’s wife, Donna, and Gatewood Bell, who bought the daughter of Algorithms for $10,000.
Nana’s Girl was named by trainer Don Campbell and his daughter Blair Knight for Campbell’s two granddaughters, in honor of what they called his wife, Kim, who passed away last year from cancer. Campbell and Knight own Nana’s Girl, who, in another twist of fate, the trainer bought off Hancock last September.
“Isn’t that something?†Campbell, who lives in Princeton, Ky., said Saturday morning. “… I congratulated John twice. I did it once and went back again. I know it was emotional for him, too.â€
Indeed, Hancock virtually never is at a loss for words, but he could barely speak after the race.
“I’ve been in this winner’s circle a long time,†he said, his voice catching. “This one means a lot. After we realized what she was, Gatewood called me and asked if we wanted to partner up. You can’t get a better owner than Gatewood Bell.â€
“It’s unbelievable,†said Donna Hancock. “We’ve been waiting nine months for this, and we knew she was a runner when we got her. Now she showed us she is.â€
Getting Bivian B to the races has been a rollercoaster. First the Riverside Downs training center flooded last winter, putting Hancock’s horses behind as they could only jog on the track’s sweeping turns because the straightaways were under water. A brief illness at Keeneland further delayed Bivian B’s debut.
“He’s always thought really highly of her,†Bell said. “Then when he named her after his mom, we thought she was all right. It’s good because he was really hopeful for her. He thought she was going to run at Keeneland, and then we had to take a step back.â€
Bivian B now will be pointed for the $75,000 Ellis Park Debutante on Aug. 19.
Campbell said he could hardly sleep Friday night.
“She’s just got special spot in my heart,†he said. “That’s the reason for us running in the pink (bandages and bridle); my wife passed away of cancer last year. She turned out to be a nice filly, and it’s super exciting. If I ever get a stud colt I really like, I’m going to name him Nana’s Boy.
“I know she’s a whale of a nice filly, and I knew John’s filly was really good. I was super pleased. Everybody would have been tickled to death had she won, but it was so close, it was great.â€
Hancock said he bought Nana’s Girl from his Lexington veterinarian last fall and talked Campbell into buying the filly.
“I won and he ran second,†he said. “He was quick to come over and congratulate me. He said this year in September to call him again, that he wanted to buy some more.â€
“He said, ‘She’s probably too small for me, but she seems really nice and OK,’†Campbell said. “I went down there and looked at her. She suited me. I said, ‘Yeah, I’ll take her.’ Then I called my daughter, because I’d told her, ‘We need to buy a nice filly and name her after mom.’â€
It was a big race overall for the locals, with Jason Barclay finishing another two lengths back in fourth with first-time starter Arch Avenue, an Ellis Park-based trifecta only busted up by an Ian Wilkes shipper, 4-1 second choice Champagne Anyone.
Bivian B’s triumph was Hancock’s sixth win out of 20 starts this meet, trailing only 2015 titlist Brad Cox’s nine victories heading into Saturday’s card.
“He brings them in by van loads,†Hancock said of trying to catch Cox for the title. “I’ll chase him… But no, we can’t beat him. He just keeps coming with rockets — and he’s winning the big races.â€
More important to Hancock is honoring his mother.
“I set out for four things to do for my mom this summer, and so far as I’ve got three of them done,†he said, including two wins by American Alphabet, who on July 4 won the memorial race named for Bivian. “The 2-year-old filly I have in (Sunday) also is named for my mom. Her name was Bivian B, but everybody knew her as Punkin. So Dixieland Punkin is in, picked to win.â€
On July 4, American Alphabet won the race that Hancock sponsored and named for his mom in what he says will be an annual memorial race, keeping the blanket in the stable’s blue and white colors and embroidered with “In memory of Bivian B. Hancock.†That was goal No. 1.
Goal 2 was what in racetrack parlance would be called an “added starter,†when WEHT-TV morning news anchor Jake Boswell wanted to do a piece on what is involved with getting a horse ready to and then running in a race. Hooked up with Hancock, the race happened to be American Alphabet running back July 20.
Hancock’s six wins have come in the 24 starts since American Alphabet’s July 4 appearance. Each winner has been ridden by Morales.
Turf Titan takes turf allowance feature
Calumet Farm’s Turf Titan, ridden by turf-titan Joe Rocco Jr., swept up the rail from last of six to edge front-running even-money favorite Chocolate Ride by a half-length in Saturday’s $44,000 second-level turf allowance feature with an optional claiming price of $40,000. Time for 1 1/16 miles was 1:41.39, with Turf Titan paying $11.40 to win.
The 5-year-old son of turf champion Kitten’s Joy finished fourth, beaten a total of a length, in a similar race at Churchill Downs in his last start – but he had a big excuse, Rocco said.
“It was really hot at Churchill,†said Rocco, who has earned a reputation with handicappers as an exceptional turf rider. “He finished the race, but when we pulled up after the race, he was acting really funny, really weird. He had heat stroke. So I jumped off on the backside after the race, and he still ran a huge race. I figured today, with it being cooler, that he’d run well because he ran so well last time when the heat was getting to him.
“I got lucky to get through on the fence. If I’d gone around, I might not have won. In my head on the turn, I said, ‘I’m not going to beat him (Chocolate Ride) if I go around them. I’m going to have to just wait and hope to get lucky.’ And it worked out, thank goodness.â€
Chocolate Ride, an 8-year-old gelding, was in for the $40,000 claiming option. That’s the same price for which he was claimed four years ago. In between he won four graded stakes and seven races for trainer Brad Cox, Ellis’ winningest trainer this meet.
Turf Titan, trained by Jose Fernandez, now is 3-0-2 in nine starts.
