BY BROCK SHERIDAN
HALLANDALE BEACH, FL-Lennilu raced just to the outside of Finding Strength through two-and-a-half furlongs then the two fillies remained heads apart to the wire with Lennilu winning in a head-bobbing finish in the 44th running of the $100,000 Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association Florida Sire Stakes Desert Vixen at Gulfstream Park Saturday.
Six 2-year-old fillies by registered Florida stallions went six furlongs in the first leg of the filly division of $1.2 million series that was the co-feature with the $100,000 Dr. Fager, the six-furlong colts and gelding division of the series.
Ridden by Jonathan Ocasio and trained by Patrick Biancone, Lennilu won for the third time in four starts while taking her second stakes victory. The gray or roan daughter of Pleasant Acres Stallions’ freshman sire Leinster won the $100,000 Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies going five furlongs on the turf at Gulfstream on May 10 after winning her introduction against maiden special weight fillies going four-and-a-half furlongs in the slop at Keeneland on April 6.
In her only loss, she was third behind winner True Love (Ire) in the Group 2 Queen Mary at Royal Ascot on June 18.
It was the first victory in the Florida Sire Stakes for Biancone and Ocasio.
“She has everything. That’s why we brought her to England. She couldn’t beat the winner, because [True Love] is the best filly in Europe. She could have been second, but she never saw the horse on the inside. But everyone was delighted by the race,” Biancone said. “When you go overseas and travel so far and perform well, that’s why we gave her a big rest.”
Lennilu was also entered to run in the $1 million Untapable at Kentucky Downs on Sunday, but Biancone elected to stay home and go in the Desert Vixen.
“We finally decided to stay here because of the rain in Kentucky, and I didn’t want to run on soft ground, and over here when it rained she liked the wet track,” he said. “We gave her plenty of time because we want her to be ready for the Breeders’ Cup.”
Lennilu broke on top from post three in the Desert Vixen but was passed by Finding Strength on the inside and finished the first quarter-mile in :22.15 on the fast track. They raced together through a half-mile in :45.50 and finished in a stakes record time of 1:10.72. It was .13 faster than R Morning Brew’s 1:10.85 in the 2024 Desert Vixen.
Finding Strength was two-and-three-quarters length ahead of Love Like Lucy in third followed by Evolution, Happy Feet Hannah and Copper Creole. Laigina was scratched.
“It was a pretty exciting moment. I thought the [Lennilu] won it pretty well. I was confident that the filly won it, but it was close at the end,” Ocasio said. “She’s a filly I’ve been working in the morning. I know her pretty well. I just tried to keep her comfortable the whole way. When I asked her at the end, thank God, she gave me everything.”
Lennilu paid $4.80 as the 7-5 favorite.
“Jonathan [Ocasio] was very good because I told him no more than [twice with the crop]. Just give her two and finish with your hands, and she put her nose down because she’s a winner,” Biancone said. “When they put up the number I was sure we got it. I’ve been beaten many times and I’ve won plenty, too, like that.”
Finding Strength’s trainer, Michael Yates, was thrilled with his filly’s effort.
“She ran really well,” he said. “Being inside today she kind of had to go a little bit. I thought she was well within herself and she ran hard to the wire.”
Lennilu earned $60,000 for the win to increase her career bankroll to $163,289 for owners Amy Dunne, Caitlin Dunne, Brenda Miley, Jean Wilkinson, Hoffman Family Racing LLC, Tranquility Lake Farms LLC, Maury Harrington and Christophe K. Harrington.
“She has this good race in her,” Biancone said. “In three weeks she has the five-eighths on the turf and then we go to Del Mar.”
Lennilu is out of Lulu’s Pom Pom, by Pomeroy and was bred in Florida by Helen and Joseph Barbazon. She is the fourth foal out of Lulu’s Pom Pom and only winner from two starters. Lulu’s Pom Pom was bred to back to Leinster in 2025.
Lennilu is a graduate of the 2024 Ocala Breeders’ Sales Winter Mixed Sale where Glencrest Farm purchased her for $23,000 out of the Abbie Road Farm consignment.
Return to the September 6 issue of Wire to Wire
