Lady Eli and Irad Ortiz Jr. Photo: NYRA/Chelsea Durand
For a man whose volubility makes him a terrific interview, Jay Hanley was curiously silent as he stood near the winner’s circle at Belmont Park on Saturday afternoon. Minutes earlier, his Lady Eli had won the Grade 1, $500,000 Flower Bowl, her second race and first win since she was injured after the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational in July of 2015.
Searching for words, he said, “I don’t know if…vindicated? is the right word?”
Then, a smile beginning to creep across his face, he said, “’Relaxed’ is definitely not the right word.”
Continue reading at TwinSpires…
Brooklyn Backstretch 
Quietly could be the best story in racing this year. I’ll be rooting for her to cap off a remarkable comeback at the Breeders Cup.
At times over the weekend, I was disappointed to be missing Keeneland. But I’d have been so disappointed not to be at Belmont for this, which was the high point on a pretty terrific day at Belmont. “Remarkable,” indeed.