SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (AP) — Love and Pride held off heavily favored Royal Delta by a half-length Sunday in the $600,000 Personal Ensign Invitational Handicap at Saratoga Race Course.
Ridden by John Velazquez and trained by Todd Pletcher, Love and Pride ran 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.22 and paid $22, $6.70 and $3.50 for her third victory in seven starts this season.
Royal Delta returned $2.70 and $2.10, and It’s Tricky paid $2.10 to show.
Royal Delta, the 2011 champion 3-year-old filly and winner of her last two races, bore out and lost momentum leaving the stretch turn. It’s Tricky, winner of three straight races and second in the wagering, stumbled badly at the break and failed to fully recover.
Love and Pride earned $360,000 for the Green Hills Farm.
