Forever Unbridled earns third straight graded triumph in Apple Blossom

Charles Fipke’s homebred Forever Unbridled has been doing everything right of late, taking the Comely (G3) to close out her sophomore campaign and opening 2016 with a victory in the Houston Ladies Classic (G3).

On Friday, the Unbridled’s Song filly continued her winning ways by running down 4-5 favorite Untapable in the $600,000 Apple Blossom H. (G1) at Oaklawn Park with John Velazquez in the irons.

Untapable gunned straight for the front when the gates opened and proceeded to set splits of :24.06 and :48.10 on the backstretch. Streamline kept in close attendance to her outside, with Forever Unbridled not much farther back.

The trio continued in that order into the final turn, where Streamline ranged up to run in tandem with Untapable before taking over entering the stretch. Forever Unbridled was kicking into gear, as well, and quickly wrested away command of the lead from Streamline. The Dallas Stewart charge continued motoring to the wire, where she finished 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.08 over the fast main track at Oaklawn.

Forever Unbridled paid $10.40 as the 4-1 third choice in the six-distaffer field. Streamline was 2 1/4 lengths behind on the line, while Tara’s Tango rallied to stick her head in front of Untapable to take third. Theogony and Call Pat completed the order of finish.

Untapable has been second by a neck in her past two starts, the October 4 Spinster (G1) and March 19 Azeri (G2). The 2014 Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) and Kentucky Oaks (G1) champion suffered her first unplaced run in this spot since finishing fifth in that same year’s Haskell Invitational (G1) against the boys.

Forever Unbridled, on the other hand, has been on the winning track ever since her fifth-place effort in the Raven Run (G2) last October at Keeneland. Prior to that, the bay miss was 11th in the Kentucy Oaks, third in both the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) and Rachel Alexandra (G3), and runner-up in the Silverbulletday S.

The Kentucky-bred four-year-old improved her career mark to 4-2-2 from 10 lifetime starts and has now banked $911,600 for taking her first Grade 1 victory in the Apple Blossom.

Forever Unbridled is out of Lemons Forever, who upset the 2006 Kentucky Oaks at 47-1 for Stewart, and counts as a half-sister Grade 1 heroine Unbridled Forever, who ran second to Untapable in the 2014 Kentucky Oaks.

Forever Unbridled photo courtesy of Oaklawn Park/Coady Photography