Mystic Lake Leads Mo Town Stakes Double
Mystic Lake (4f Mo Town x Salty Soul, by Itsmyluckyday) extended her win streak to four on Saturday with a victory in the Liberty Bell Stakes at Parx for her 10th career stakes victory as one of two stakes winners on the day for her sire.
Returning to the track that saw her finish fourth in a Grade I last term, Mystic Lake was quick away from the gate in the 6 ½ furlong dirt race and never looked back. Setting an uncontested pace, she had at least a length on the field throughout much of the race and wasn’t asked to do much more until the stretch.
Jockey Tyler Gaffalione urged her home before giving her a final tap in the final sixteenth before letting her do the rest on her own for a 1 ¾ length win over her sire’s other entrant Volleyballprincess with the third placed runner five lengths back.
Trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. for C2 Racing Stable and Stefania Farms, the Peggy Costanzo-bred Mystic Lake has won 11 of her 20 starts with four other top three finishes for $1,447,642 in earnings.
After a pair of third place finishes in Grade IIIs in his first two stakes starts, the William Morey-trained Brotha Keny (3g Mo Town x Raramuri Princess, by Northern Afleet) shipped to Churchill Downs to register his first stakes victory in the Bourbon Flight Stakes.
Racing over 1 3/16 miles on the dirt, his victory looked similar to Mystic Lake’s with an all the way win. However, this one wasn’t as easy as that filly’s with Chunk of Gold keeping on the pressure throughout. It wasn’t until just outside the final furlong that Brotha Keny was able to shake Chunk of Gold, but he quickly built a 1 ½ length margin that he kept all the way to the line with the third placed runner 9 ¼ lengths behind him.
Racing for Lance and Steve Kinross, three-time winner Brotha Keny has finished in the top three seven of 11 times for $318,190 in earnings.
Bred by Terrazas Thoroughbreds, the gelding is a half-brother to stakes winner Concealed Carry as one of nine winners from nine foals out of Raramuri Princess. That mare is a half-sister to the stakes placed Chief Counsel and out of stakes winner Format.
Mo Town’s eight 2025 stakes winners is second only to Justify among fourth crop stallions with the Uncle Mo son’s 892 winners putting him third in the crop and 12 stakes performers placing him sixth.