Cheeky Gal’s Del Mar win tops big weekend for Maximus Mischief

One day after Carmelina gave Maximus Mischief his first stakes winner, Cheeky Gal scored a gritty debut maiden special weight win Sunday at Del Mar to become Maximus Mischief’s 10 U. S. based winner.

Maximus Mischief now leads the 2023 First-Crop Sire list by winners and progeny earnings, with $551,866.

Cheeky Gal was prominent from the outset of Sunday’s six-furlong contest. She was head-to-head with Nothing Like You the entire trip, with the latter leading for the first half-mile. Cheeky Gal took a narrow lead at the top of the stretch and dug in gamely to hold her foe off by a half-length at the wire.

Cheeky Gal sold for $135,000 at this year’s OBS April 2-year-olds in Training sale to her owners Gary Barber and STD Racing Stable. She was bred in Kentucky by Ledgelands, LLC and Andrew Ritter.