After suffering a narrow defeat at Churchill Downs last time out, Raiding Party returned to the scene with a point to prove—and she made sure there would be no denying her this time.
Drawn in the challenging outside post 12, Raiding Party broke sharply and was immediately faced with adversity. Forced to race five-wide heading into the first turn, she covered significantly more ground than many of her rivals but travelled comfortably throughout while sitting in mid-pack.
Despite the difficult trip, the daughter of Sioux Nation never looked uncomfortable. Curtis kept her in a rhythm as the field made its way down the backstretch, and when the tempo began to increase approaching the far turn, Raiding Party was ready to make her move.
Still racing five-wide turning for home, the filly unleashed an impressive turn of foot in the stretch. Showing both her class and determination, she surged past her rivals and quickly put the race to bed, drawing clear to score a cosy and authoritative victory under a patient ride from Ben Curtis.
It was a performance full of grit and talent from a filly who refused to let an unfavorable draw or a wide trip stand in her way.
Congratulations to owners Larry Rodgers and Coast Racing on the well-deserved victory.
