Blog: Maiden score for Aiden’s Rag Doll

Aiden’s Rag Doll (inside) prevails. Photo by The Racing Biz.

In a race featuring a pair of pricey Bodemeister fillies — Lady Lindsey, a $190,000 auction purchase trained by Graham Motion, and Bodaciousness, a $215,000 purchase coming out of the Michael Dickinson barn — it was a Kenny Cox-trained daughter of Union Rags who went off the favorite in today’s ninth at Laurel Park, a $40,000 maiden test for juvenile fillies going six furlongs.

Aiden’s Rag Doll lived up to her advance billing, though at the three-eighths pole, it appeared that a lot of bettors would be unhappy with the outcome.  After getting bumped out of the gate and steadied near the five-eighths, Aiden’s Rag Doll came under a Feargal Lynch ride with half of the race still to go.  But, once he got her outside, she found another gear and came home to win by a neck in 1:12.65.  She now has a win and a second from three starts.  In Cox’s own words:

When she checked and then dropped back, honestly, at the three-eighths pole and going under a ride, I’m thinking we’re in trouble from this point on.  He [Lynch] thought she would be more comfortable behind horses, but once he got her outside, that was where she wanted to be.  She’s coming around, and each race she’s improving for us…

All along from the first time we breezed her up until the first start, we’ve always thought this was going to be something special. We’ve had a lot of high hopes…

[For her next start] There’s a  little stake [the $100,000 Smart Halo] coming up here in three to four weeks.  After that we’re talking about giving her some time and bringing her back for the spring.  We’ve always had a lot of high hopes for this filly and think that [going] long in the spring she’ll be a better horse.