Five weeks after landing her first graded victory in Tampa Bay Down‘s Endeavour Stakes (G3T), Saffron Moon asserted her affinity over the Oldsmar, Fla., turf course once more with another late-running score in the $200,000 Hillsborough Stakes (G2T) March 8.
The 6-year-old daughter of Malibu Moon once again employed her electrifying turf of foot down the lane, out-finishing South African group 1 winner Gimme a Nother by three-quarters of a length under the wire.
Highly regarded following her impressive maiden romp at Keeneland during the 2022 spring meet, Saffron Moon battled various issues throughout her career which led to her being relatively lightly raced for a 6-year-old. However, trainer Chad Brown has continuously credited the patience of her owners, Phil and Christine Hatfield of CHP Racing, for Saffron Moon’s recent success.
“My team has done a great job with her, and I’m real happy for the owners, Phil and Christine Hatfield, as they stuck with her,” Brown said. “I think this race gives us a lot of confidence her ceiling is unlimited. She has always trained like a good horse; she may not have run much from 2-5 (years old), but it was not because we were waiting for her to come around. She was on the sidelines a lot, but when she was in the barn she was always impressive in the mornings and in her training.”
Perfectly placed early under Flavien Prat, Saffron Moon parked in fourth position down the backstretch as longshot Avenue Niel and Frankie Dettori logged mild early fractions of :23.96 and :48.45. Past the half-mile pole, the race order was shaken up when Joel Rosario pulled the trigger early aboard Eternal Silence , cueing the Christophe Clement runner to the lead in a seemingly premature move.
Falling back into fifth, Saffron Moon turned for home crowded and awaiting running room. Never one to rush a horse, a chilly Prat struck when the moment was right, tipping Saffron Moon into a clear path as the pair dashed to the advantage.
Graham Motion-trained Gimme a Nother, previously undefeated in her native country, tried gallantly but just fell short of catching Saffron Moon at the finish. She was 2 1/4 lengths better than Saffron Moon’s stablemate, Venencia , in third.
“She ran great,” Motion said of Gimme a Nother’s North American debut. The Hillsborough was the 5-year-old’s first race in eleven months. “I think it was a pretty credible performance by a horse who hadn’t run since April against a filly who is pretty good.”
Closing the windows as the even-money favorite, Saffron Moon ($4.20) completed the 1 1/8 miles on a firm turf course in 1:47.58.
Saffron Moon is one of three winners produced from the Medaglia d’Oro mare Crocus Hill, a daughter of the grade 1-winning turf mare and $1.2 million earner Vacare. Bred by Cove Springs Farm, Saffron Moon sold to Sitak Stable for $80,000 at the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Saffron Moon is sired by the late Spendthrift stallion Malibu Moon, who is also the sire of this year’s Kentucky Oaks (G1) contender and Honeybee Stakes (G3) victress Quietside .
