Smooch Up stays unbeaten with Malvern Rose Stakes romp at Presque Isle

Smooch Up did more than win the Malvern Rose Stakes on Monday night at Presque Isle Downs. She crushed a field of Pennsylvania-bred 3-year-old fillies by 6 1/4 lengths, stopped the 6 1/2-furlong trip in 1:16.32, and strengthened the sense that her ceiling is still rising.

Antonio Gallardo settled the Tapit filly into third early while Divine Intentions carved out the pace in 22.88 seconds for the quarter and 46.35 for the half on the all-weather surface in Erie, Pennsylvania. When Gallardo asked for run in the stretch, Smooch Up quickened clear and was never seriously threatened. Eye Candy Warrior rallied for second, 2 1/4 lengths ahead of Divine Intentions, who held third by a neck over Divine Seeker.

The manner of victory mattered as much as the margin. Smooch Up did not need the lead, did not need a perfect setup and did not need to be pushed into her best work. That kind of versatility is what turns a useful state-bred filly into a possible force against stronger company, especially when she keeps delivering the same answer on her preferred track. She is now unbeaten in four starts at Presque Isle Downs.

That local record has been built carefully. Smooch Up debuted with a win at Erie, then shipped to Colonial Downs and finished third in the Keswick Stakes on dirt. She returned to Presque Isle for a 9 3/4-length allowance and optional claiming victory, followed by a narrow win in the Presque Isle Debutante. When she tried seven furlongs in the Glorious Song at Woodbine, she finished fifth, but Monday’s rebound showed how quickly she can reassert herself when she is back on Tapeta.

The Malvern Rose itself carries more than a purse check. The race is named for Malvern Rose, a Pennsylvania-bred filly who raced from 1999 to 2003 and was a multiple stakes winner with earnings of almost $500,000. Past winners have included eventual graded stakes winners Caravel and Roses for Debra, and Smooch Up’s fast time bettered the 2025 running won by Our Lady in 1:17.66.

For trainer Ron Potts, owners-breeders Tammy Klimasewski and Robert Klimasewski, and a stable that also had Thank You Amy in the mix, the race reinforced a strong hand in the division. In a Pennsylvania-bred stakes program that includes 20 races and $1.7 million in purses, Smooch Up now looks like one of the fillies most likely to move beyond regional success.