Dreamaway shows solid form in Colleen Stakes

The 2-year-old filly Dreamaway looked competent winning her career debut over the Keeneland dirt track in April. She looked fantastic on the Monmouth Park turf course Sunday in capturing the $100,000 Colleen Stakes by 5 1/4 lengths.  Breaking sharply under Paco Lopez and taking an early lead, Dreamaway’s most impressive section of the Colleen, a five-furlong turf sprint, came from the quarter pole to the furlong grounds, where she blew open a close contest. Popstyle and Me Governor pressed up outside Dreamaway at the three-furlong marker partway around the far
turn, but Dreamaway dashed away from those two when Lopez let her go while turning for home.  “I’ve been waiting to get her on the grass,” said Wesley Ward, who trains Dreamaway for her breeder, John Oxley. “She’s always just been from Day 1 when we got her in September such a sweetheart. The easiest horse to break, a 95-pound exercise rider can gallop her with one
hand, she’s as sound as a horse can be, always gets to the bottom of the feed tub.”

Dreamaway won her Keeneland start by just a head, clocking a moderate time, and Ward didn’t judge her early-season quality sufficient to join the group of horses he sent to race at Royal Ascot. Dreamaway, by Flameaway, is the second foal to race produced by the Tapit mare Dream Dancing, an Oxley homebred of Grade 1 turf quality during her racing career.

“She had a good turf work up at Saratoga just cruising around there,” Ward said.

Lopez eased up on Dreamaway as she ran her final Colleen furlong in a snappy 11.28. Lemonpeppasteppa, a sharp turf-sprint debut winner earlier this month at Monmouth, finished decently for second while coming nowhere near the winner. Me Governor was a neck farther back in fourth as Dreamaway, who paid $3.60 as a heavy favorite, was timed in 55.64 over a firm course. Four fillies were scratched including Sharedshenanigans, who, on paper at least, appeared to be a key contender.

Dreamaway suggested Sunday she could be Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint material and will be treated accordingly. Ward said he plans to send the filly to California, where she’ll train toward the Speakeasy Stakes on Oct. 5 at Santa Anita.

“As you get to the end of summer and into fall, these races get
tougher and tougher,”
 Ward said.

Dreamaway on Sunday looked up for about any challenge.