Adam Coglianese
Albert Fried, Jr.’s late-blooming homebred Moonlight Song (Unbridled’s Song) brought home his first stakes victory at age seven on Thursday when he won the $75,000 Gold and Roses Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack after a stalking trip.
Expertly restrained by the assistant starter after breaking through the gate moments before start of the six-furlong gold and Roses, Moonlight Song exited his outside post (of six) like a rocket under Jose Ortiz at the break, but deferred the top spot to 17-1 longshot Night Maneuver, who moved up from his inside post to the grab the lead.
Stalking the pacesetter intently, even-money second choice Moonlight Song advanced steadily along the backstretch and around the far turn, coming within a half-length of Night Maneuver. The dark bay drew alongside pacesetter at the top of the lane and struck the front with three-sixteenths of mile to go before drawing off to a 1 1/2-length victory.
Night Maneuver kept to his task, but lost a tight photo for second to 4-5 favorite Palace. Following the top three across the finish line were: Dan’s Gold, Uncle T Seven and Bug Juice. After solid early fractions (23.69, 47.13), Moonlight Song’s final time for six furlongs over the good harrowed inner track was 1:10.58.
Moonlight Song, who did not get to the races until age five, is turning into a poster child for patience rewarded. He began his career for trainer Charlton Baker with back-to-back victories a month apart in February and March 2012 going 1 mile and 70 yards on the Aqueduct inner oval. It took him six races and 14 months, however, to get back to the winner’s circle, including a ten-month period beginning in July 2012 during which he only managed one start, where he was virtually eased during a race in the slop at Belmont on October 4, 2012.
In his return to the races on May 19, 2013, Moonlight Song’s victory in a second-level state-bred allowance race – his best performance to date Beyer-wise (82) – was a sign of good things to come. First or second in all five starts in 2013 while earning Beyer Speed Figures in the mid-nineties, Moonlight Song tested stakes waters for the first time in the Hudson on Showcase Day, where he ran a competitive second to Palace, who won the Grade 3 Fall Highweight in his next start.
After turning the tables on Palace in the Gold and Roses, Moonlight Song’s record stands at 6-2-1 from 13 starts with $303,294 in earnings.
Moonlight Song is the third foal, and one of three winners out of Moonlightandbeauty (Capote), also bred by Fried. Fried purchased the dam of Moonlightandbeauty, Stolen Beauty (Deputy Minister), for $30,000 at the 1990 Keeneland September yearling sale. Winner of the Grade 2 Demoiselle in 1992 in her third career start, Stolen Beauty won or placed in seven stakes races and earned $299,451.
Moonlightandbeauty is Stolen Beauty’s fourth foal. A stakes winner and $228,053-earner trained by Rick Schosberg, Moonlightandbeauty began her broodmare career with a bang, producing Giant Moon (Giant’s Causeway) as her first foal. Also trained by Schosberg, Giant Moon went undefeated in his first four starts, culminating with a victory in the 2008 Count Fleet Stakes, and was voted champion New York-bred 2-year-old in 2007. Giant Moon won at least one stakes race every year from 2007 to 2010 and earned just over a half million dollars ($502,586).
Moonlightandbeauty’s most recent reported foal, and first to be offered for sale at auction, was a Medaglia d’Oro colt who brought $250,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga preferred New York-bred sale last summer. She was bred to Distorted Humor in 2013.
