Repole’s Zany Dominates Demoiselle Stakes, Gives Pletcher Record 10th Win
Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher secured his record-extending 10th victory in the GII Demoiselle Stakes at Aqueduct on Saturday as Repole Stable’s Zany delivered a commanding performance in just her second career start.
The American Pharoah filly powered to an 8 1/2-length victory in the 104th running of the historic race, collecting 10 points on the Kentucky Oaks leaderboard in the process.
Zany tracked early pacesetter Shilling through the opening stages before asserting her dominance around the far turn. Under Irad Ortiz Jr., the 2-year-old chestnut filly drew away impressively down the stretch, completing the 1 1/8 miles in 1:50.55 as the 0.75-1 favorite.
“It went like we hoped it would,” Pletcher said. “She trained very impressively, but you are always concerned making one start at 6 1/2 [furlongs] and stretching out to a mile and an eighth in only her second start.”
Jumping the Gun (Gun Runner) finished second, with Concurrently (American Pharoah) taking third.
The victory continues Pletcher’s remarkable dominance in the Demoiselle, where his previous winners include champions Malathaat and Nest. The trainer expressed optimism about Zany joining that elite company.
“Man, I hope so,” the Hall of Famer said when asked about Zany’s place among his Demoiselle winners. “Malathaat, Nest, some of those that were able to go on and have great careers afterwards. It’s been a race for us that has not only been lucky on the day, but it’s produced some horses have gone on and done very well.”
Zany entered the Demoiselle off an impressive 6 1/2-length maiden victory at Gulfstream Park on November 2. Pletcher indicated her final workout before shipping to New York convinced him to make the ambitious placement.
“I thought her last breeze before we decided to ship her was pretty impressive, so it seemed like the right thing to do,” he explained. “Just the way she galloped out, and the way she’s always trained, in particular the work before she shipped up here. She galloped out like she was wanting more ground.”
The conditioner confirmed Zany will return to Palm Beach Downs in Florida to prepare for her 3-year-old campaign.
“We probably won’t get an opportunity to run a mile and an eighth until the Kentucky Oaks, if we are fortunate enough to get there,” Pletcher added. “We’ll ship her back in a few days to Palm Beach Downs, and we’ll come up with a game plan.”
Pedigree Notes
Zany becomes American Pharoah’s 33rd graded stakes winner, joining a distinguished group that includes Japanese champion Cafe Pharoah and American standouts As Time Goes By and Marketsegmentation.
Her dam, Mo’ Green (Uncle Mo), was a graded stakes winner who earned $279,420 during her racing career. Mike Repole acquired the mare, currently in foal to Vekoma, for $550,000 at the recent Keeneland November sale.
Mo’ Green has produced five foals, with four to race and all four winning. Her yearling filly by Twirling Candy commanded $450,000 at the 2025 Keeneland September sale.
Zany was purchased by Repole Stable for $350,000 at the 2024 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling sale.
ZANY stays perfect! She goes 2-for-2 with a dominant score in the G2 Demoiselle under @iradortiz for trainer @PletcherRacing, who gets his 10th win in this race. She also picks up 10 points on the road to the Kentucky Oaks! pic.twitter.com/BMjZE5Tbuu
— NYRA (🗽) (@TheNYRA)
ZANY stays perfect! She goes 2-for-2 with a dominant score in the G2 Demoiselle under December 6, 2025
