Unique Bella upsets Champagne Room to win Las Virgenes

ARCADIA, Calif. (AP) Unique Bella won the $200,000 Las Virgenes Stakes for 3-year-old fillies by 8} lengths Sunday at Santa Anita.

Ridden by Mike Smith, Unique Bella ran a mile in 1:35.66 and paid $2.20 and $2.10 in the Grade 2 race.

Mopotism returned $4, while Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Champagne Room was another 1\\ lengths back in third. There was no show wagering because of the four-horse field. Miss Southern Miss was last.

Trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, Unique Bella was coming off a 7+-length win in the Grade 2 Santa Ynez Stakes on Jan. 8. Champagne Room, last year's Eclipse Award-winning 2-year-old filly, had been idle since winning the BC Juvenile Fillies at 33-1 odds on Nov. 5 at Santa Anita.

Unique Bella has three wins in four career starts. She earned 10 points toward qualifying for a spot in the 14-horse field for the $1 million Kentucky Oaks on May 5 at Churchill Downs.

Champagne Room earned two points for her third-place finish, but she tops the Kentucky Oaks leaderboard with 23 points. Unique Bella is third with 20 overall points.