Mahogany Hall Uses Late Burst to Beat Serena’s Song at Saratoga

With a ferocious run through the final 110 yards, Mahogany Hall rocketed from next-to-last to edge Serena’s Song at the wire and win Saturday’s $350,000 Whitney at Saratoga Race Course by a neck.

Serena’s Song, a 4-year-old filly ridden by Jerry Bailey, led every step of the 1 1/8-mile race until Mahogany Hall kicked into high gear on the outside and caught her at the wire.

“He had it all the way,” winning jockey Jose Santos said. “I knew I had the race won at the eighth pole.”

Said trainer Wayne Lukas of Serena’s Song--the lone filly in the nine-horse field: “She gave us a heart-pounding finish. I’m proud of the way she ran.”

It was the first victory in four starts this year for the 5-year-old Mahogany Hall. Peaks And Valleys finished third, a length behind Serena’s Song.