ELMONT, N.Y. - Cornelio Velasquez attempted to get Rightly So off the pace in Monday's Grade 3 Bed o' Roses Handicap at Belmont Park. But the 4-year-old filly wanted no part of it.

Smart filly.

Combining her strongest weapons - her natural speed and her tenacity - Rightly So scored a front-running, head victory over even-money favorite Qualia in the $150,000 Bed o' Roses. It was 3 1/4 lengths back to McVictory in third.

"I didn't send her," Velasquez said. "I tried to get her back, but she ran off and I let her go."

The win was the sixth from 10 starts for Rightly So, a 4-year-old New York-bred daughter of Read the Footnotes owned by Ahmed Zayat, and her first in a graded event. She was beaten one-half length by Hour Glass in the Grade 2 Vagrancy here on May 29. Rightly So's four losses come have by a total of 1 3/4 lengths.

Rightly So's victory capped a remarkable weekend for the New York breeding program, coming on the heels of Haynesfield's victory in Saturday's Grade 2 Suburban and Franny Freud's score in Sunday's Grade 1 Prioress.

Rightly So broke sharp and Velasquez was attempting to get off of the other speed horse, Lady Alexander. But after the first eighth of a mile, Velasquez let Rightly So assume the front and the filly set fractions of 22.21 seconds for the quarter and 44.99 for the half-mile.

"I didn't send her, I tried to get her back," Velasquez said. "She ran off and I let her go. Last time, she didn't finish. Today, she finished good."

Qualia, the 6-5 favorite under Rajiv Maragh, moved into second early down the backside and attempted to stalk Rightly So. Though she appeared not to be gaining on Rightly So in midstretch, she persevered on and was making a run at Rightly So late only to lose the head-bob at the wire.

Rightly So, trained by Tony Dutrow, covered the seven furlongs in 1:22.44 and returned $9.40 as the third choice.

"Personally, I'm taken back from just how game that filly is, how hard she tries," Dutrow said. "I know she's not the best horse in the world. she tries so incredibly hard. It's just what horse racing is all about."

Maragh thought Qualia ran a huge race for her stakes debut. She has now won four of six races with two losses by a neck and a head.

"My horse had no excuse, she had all chances to go by, she ran hard to the end just couldn't get by,'' Maragh said. "There could only be one winner today; the other one was just better today.''