When it comes to who owns the best filly or mare racing in Minnesota, John Mentz has the best of both worlds: he owns the top two. Mentz purchased Ready to Runaway, a daughter of First Dude, for a mere $4,000 at the 2017 Minnesota yearling sale, and Clickbait for $21,000 with partners Hugh Robertson and Jeff Larson at the same sale. 

  Ready to Runaway and Clickbait, now six, have been facing each other in minor stakes at Canterbury Park for the last few years and have taken turns beating each other. It’s been a bonanza for Mentz; after Clickbait captured the $50,000 Lady Slipper Stakes last night for the second straight year, with her stablemate second in both, the two mares have collected $788,640 between them.

    Ready to Runaway returned from an 8 1/2-month layoff last night and obviously needed a race. She sat off the pace set by Clickbait in the six-furlong test, and when she moved on the turn, fell short by 5 1/2 lengths as Clickbait registered a 1:08.46 on the teletimer, just two-fifths off the track record. 

    Multiple stakes-winner Ready to Runaway, who won the Lady Slipper two years ago, raised her eye-opening record to 12-7-3 in 24 starts and the runner-up check ballooned her bank account to $485,535. Barring the unforeseen, she’ll soon become First Dude’s fifth runner to pass the $500,000 mark.