Dark Artist, a 3-year-old Paynter filly, earned her first stakes win in Saturday’s $75,000 Boiling Springs S. at Monmouth Park, defeating favored Reversethedecision by three-quarters of a length under a heady ride by Trevor McCarthy.
The bay filly, who was bred by Winchell Thoroughbreds and WinStar Farm, is the seventh stakes horse this year for Paynter, who progeny have now topped $1 million this year. Winner of the Haskell S. (G1) at Monmouth, Paynter is in the top five on the 2018 Second-Crop Sire list by winners, earnings and black type horses.
Dark Artist got a clean trip under McCarthy. Fifth for the first five furlongs, he began to advance on the turn, made the lead over Bramble Queen in mid-stretch, then held Reversethedecision at bay in the final sixteenth to stop the timer in 1:41.81 for the 1 1/16-miles on a firm turf course.
“We’ve been working with her to get her to relax and to be able to race like this,” winning trainer Jane Cibelli said. “Her last race (a three-length allowance win at Gulfstream Park on April 27) she just made the lead so easily and we knew that at this stage of her career you can’t put her where you want to. You have to let her break and see where she ends up. Trevor has great hands and got her to relax.”
Dark Artist is now 3-0-1 in seven starts and has banked $105,136 for her owner Goodwood Racing VIII. She is out of Ominous Cat, whose dam Fleet Renee won both the Mother Goose S. (G1) and Ashland S. (G1).
