Personal Filly wins the Gr1 Gran Premio Seleccion de Potrancas (Pic – Supplied)
Leading South African owner and breeder Mary Slack’s silks have won on four continents this year.
Africa, Europe, Asia, and now South America have hosted Slack winners after Personal Filly won the Gr1 Gran Premio Seleccion de Potrancas at Hipodromo La Plata.
Sporting Post
The daughter of Dabster reasserted her absolute dominance by defeating Siesta by 5 lengths in another triumph for Juan Saldivia and William Pereyra, in a race that starting in 2027 will sadly lose its top-flight status.
The absolute dominance she had displayed in the Gr2 Polla de Potrancas found a resounding confirmation over the 2000 meters of the Gran Premio Selección de Potrancas where she once again left Siesta (Cityscape) as her runner-up, this time by 5 lengths.
Her crowning glory also carried a historic significance that will endure: she became the last winner of the traditional test while holding Gr1 status. Starting in 2027, the Selección will be downgraded to Gr2, leaving the Gran Premio Dardo Rocha as the sole top-flight event of the La Plata season.
The representative of South African outfit Wilgerbosdrift, a daughter of Dabster and Pure Doris, delivered exactly as expected from such a clear favourite. William Pereyra settled her in fourth through the early stages, letting the race take shape up front while conserving the energy that would later prove the difference-maker.
By the far turn, the chestnut filly began closing in on Everose (Uncle Chuck), who had been tasked with calling the running. Her advance was continuous and, as they straightened for home, she took command. The moment to decide the race had arrived, and Personal Filly handled it with the effortless grace of a true star.
Siesta tried to close the gap and briefly put the leader to the test. It was then that the favorite re-engaged, lengthening her stride and turning that threat into a futile pursuit. The 5-length margin at the wire accurately reflected the contest: a filly running with plenty in reserve and another doing everything possible to keep up.
The timer stopped in 2:06.50 for the winner, who elevated her record to 3 wins from 5 starts. Siesta, who had also finished second in the Polla and fifth just a week earlier in the Gr2 Clásico Federico de Alvear at San Isidro, turned in another honest effort, though once again forced to acknowledge an indisputable superior.
Medium-built at 442 kilograms, Personal Filly packs far more than her frame suggests. She possesses the patience to wait, the resolve to go after the race, and a final kick that enables her to sustain her effort. Over two kilometers, those virtues aligned to yield the most important victory of her career.
For Juan Saldivia and William Pereyra, the victory extended an extraordinary vein of form.
The horizon now presents a particularly enticing possibility for Personal Filly. The Gr1 Gran Premio Selección Palermo is one.
There, she could cross paths with her paternal half-sister Look At To Me, also trained by Saldivia and a dominant recent winner of the Polla. It will be a decision for the coming days, but the manner in which she handled her first test over 2000 meters suggests a bright future.
