Remember Mamba powered home in the stretch of the $589,500 Transylvania Stakes (G3T) at Keeneland to keep his perfect record intact for his connections.
Going 1 1/16 miles, the 3-year-old son of Kitten's Joy was bumped at the start under jockey Jose Ortiz and settled toward the back of the field. The pace was set by the Ben Colebrook trainee Street Beast, who posted fractions of :23.20, :48.28, and 1:13.72. He traveled in hand down the backstretch and, as the field hit the top of the stretch, he remained in fifth position, 1 1/2 lengths off the leader. Coming under a drive in the stretch on the grandstand side, he ran down new leader Honey Dutch to win by a half-length on the wire.
"The key (to being 3-for-3 and now a stakes winner) is the horse keeps getting better and better. I had a good trip," Ortiz said. "I was able to follow Flavien (Prat aboard Vasy) every step of the way around there. He did everything perfect. He keeps getting better and better and he faced better company. We think the farther he goes, the better he's going to get, so hopefully he will keep improving."
Trainer Cherie DeVaux and her team have been patient with Remember Mamba, making his first start Oct. 25 at the Keeneland fall meet last year, and having just one start since then, an allowance optional claiming race Jan. 22 at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. He completed the race in a final time of 1:44.49 and paid $6.88 for the win.
DeVaux said any added distance for the colt is welcome.
"We had this race targeted," she said. "He's a colt that acts like the more distance, the better, so really bigger races for him are in the summer. Most definitely (we'll be looking for longer ground)."
Honey Dutch was a hard-fought second in back-to-back races, having lost the Feb. 28 Colonel Liam Stakes at Gulfstream Park by only a neck and now losing the Transylvania by a half-length. The Brendan Walsh trainee Vasy was third. The pacesetter, Street Beast, faded to fourth.
As an avid Los Angeles sports fan, the colt owned by Lee and Susan Searing's C R K Stable is named after the late NBA player Kobe Bryant.
"Out of high school, I followed Kobe and when he signed with the Lakers, we started going to every Lakers game," Lee Searing said. "We followed that for 10 years or so, saw his big games, saw his last game. This one looks like a really nice horse, and what a perfect name for the horse."
Video
