Stakes Recap: Excessivespending Earns Well-Deserved Stakes Win in Nelson J. Menard Memorial

By Ryan Martin

After knocking on the door in several stakes events, Joey Keith Davis’ Excessivespending ($10.20, $4.20 and $3.80) finally secured a triumph against such caliber in Saturday’s Nelson J. Menard Memorial Overnight Stakes.

The 5-year-old daughter of Shackleford sat off the pace led by Fiesta who recorded opening fractions of 22.01 and 46.16. At the top of the stretch, Excessivespending moved to the four path and made a strong rally to tackle favored Oxford Comma ($3.40 and $3.00) and finish in a time of 1:04.25. La Dame Blanche ($4.40) rounded out the trifecta.

Completing the field were Golden Days, Contributing, Fiesta, On Probation and Soul Singer.

Jockey Mitchell Murrill guided Excessivespending to victory and earned his third stakes win of the meet.

“We got a good break and a good trip,” Murrill said. “We just had to wait on the right time. The previous race (Pan Zareta Stakes) I squeezed on her too soon and she got a little late on me but today we were able to figure it out and adjust.”

Trained by Chris Hartman, Excessivespending was third in the Pan Zareta Stakes last time out. Last May she was third behind Triple Chelsea in the Unbridled Sidney Stakes at Churchill Downs.

“She always has a chance, she tries really hard,” Hartman said. “She’s difficult to ride and Mitchell put a perfect ride on her today.”

Excessivespending has now banked a total of $305,348 having earned $44,640 from her win in the Nelson J. Menard Memorial Overnight Stakes. Saturday’s victory was her sixth win overall in a career that has seen 23 lifetime starts.

Bred in Kentucky by BMWZ Stables, Excessivespending is out of the In Excess (Ire.) broodmare Excessing, who also produced stakes winner and graded stakes placed Sweet Marini. She was purchased for $65,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Mid-Atlantic Two-Year-Olds In Training Sale from consigner Woodford Thoroughbreds.