Belmont Stakes 2016: Carina Mia wins undercard Acorn race

Carina Mia may not have been the favorite heading into Saturday’s Acorn race, but she didn’t let that stop her from earning a convincing win.

The horse settled back early and then sprung into action over the final length of track, passing up both Go Maggie Go and race-time favorite Cathryn Sophia to take the lead. She didn’t look back, crossing the finish line ahead of second-place Off the Tracks and Cathryn Sophia, who finished in third.

Carina Mia is owned by Three Chimneys Farm LLC and trained by William I. Mott. She is the offspring of Malibu Moon (A.P. Indy’s offspring and in the lineage of Seattle Slew and Secretariat) and Miss Simpatia. She has three victories prior to the Acorn, including wins in the Eight Belles (Grade 2) and Golden Rod (Grade 2) races. She finished fourth in the Grade 1 Ashland race.

Heading into the race, Cathryn Sophia was the favorite with 4-5 odds while Carina Mia carried 2-1 odds. Go-Maggie Go started the race with 9-2 odds, followed by Off the Tracks (9-1), Forever Darling (34-1) and Paola Queen (35-1).

The Acorn, a Grade 1 one-mile race on dirt featuring 3-year-old fillies, is one of the undercard races for the 2016 Belmont Stakes, held in Elmont, N.Y. Saturday. It carried a $700,000 purse.