After racking win after win after win to the tune of 17 in a row from July 2022 to Feb. 2023, Divine Art finally met a reckoning as the game Albertan mare suffered defeat to Give Me This Dance in the $20,000 California Sire Stakes opening leg on Sunday night (Feb. 19) at Cal-Expo.
Trainer-driver Gerry Longo settled in third with Divine Art while Jose Castillo trainees Park With Me Nancy and Give Me This Dance raced one-two to a :27.4 first quarter. Give Me This Dance then circled to the lead before a :58.1 half while Divine Art waited to make her move.
Longo lunged with the four-year-old Outrageous Art mare around the far turn and came within a head of the lead to three-quarters in 1:26.2. However, Give Me This Dance hit another gear and uncorked a :27.4 final quarter to edge three-quarter lengths in front of Divine Art to the finish of a 1:54.1 mile as they sprinted seven lengths clear of Park With Me Nancy in third.
Give Me This Dance, a four-year-old mare by Wind Me Up, races for owners Alan and Cheryl Sandbulte. Brad Irvine engineered the winning drive behind the $4.80 winner.