Americathegreat turned a summer of near-misses at Woodbine into a breakthrough on New York's biggest stage Friday, rallying past Bless Her to win the $200,000 Sands Point Stakes (G3T) at Belmont Park. The half-length victory was the 3-year-old filly's first stakes success and a timely validation of trainer Mark Casse's decision to move her back into graded company.
Javier Castellano kept Americathegreat roughly five lengths behind 54-1 outsider Cosmic Candy Girl through the early stages, then began advancing around the far turn. She was three wide into the stretch and had to repel Bless Her's inside challenge before finding another gear late. Bless Her held second by 1 1/2 lengths over Bohemian, while Americathegreat completed 1 1/8 miles on firm inner turf in 1:48.18. Daily Racing Form's race report documented the winning trip and order of finish.
The result also highlighted Castellano's race judgment. The Hall of Fame rider, who celebrated his 49th birthday Friday and reached 6,000 career victories earlier this year, said he was mindful that the Sands Point marked Americathegreat's first attempt at nine furlongs. Rather than force the issue early, he allowed her to settle before asking for her run. “I like the way she fought at the top of the stretch,” Castellano told America's Day at the Races, according to DRF.
That patience mattered because Americathegreat entered the race with more promise than résumé. Her three previous starts in 2026 all came at Woodbine, producing two seconds before she won an allowance optional claimer over a mile in her latest start. The Sands Point was only her third turf appearance, making the jump to a Grade 3 and the longer distance a meaningful test rather than a routine progression. BloodHorse reported that the Woodbine team's work and her latest allowance victory helped prompt the southbound trip.
Her pedigree gives the win added significance. Americathegreat is by Curlin out of America, a graded stakes-winning mare by A.P. Indy, and she is a full sister to graded stakes winner First Captain. Gary Barber and D J Stable purchased her for $1.2 million at the 2024 Keeneland September yearling sale, so Friday's performance was an important return on a substantial investment as well as a graded-stakes credential.
For Casse, the immediate question is whether to keep building around turf and stamina. Americathegreat showed she can rate, handle nine furlongs and sustain a fight through the final eighth, the combination required for the late-season filly turf program. Bless Her's second-place finish, meanwhile, came while cutting back from 1 5/16 miles and served as a useful prep for the $500,000 Jockey Club Oaks scheduled for Nov. 28, according to DRF. Americathegreat now has the more valuable asset: a graded win earned through a genuine stretch test, not a soft setup.