Liberty Rings took the $125,000 Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies S. Saturday at Gulfstream Park in what was both the turf and stakes debut for the 2-year-old Awesome Slew filly.

After a close third to a pair of Roadster colts in her April 19 debut on the dirt, Liberty Ring proved she had plenty of affinity for the grass as well with her front-running score. She put herself on the lead in the first 50 yards and rolled through fractions of :21.78 and :44.50. She cut the corner very well turning for home and held off all challengers to win by 1 ¼-lengths.

"She looks like a turf horse, big and scopey and a large foot. We figured it was worth a shot. We really don't get a chance to run in races like this very often," said winning trainer Nicholas Palmer, the owners' son. “It's a career defining moment. We've been trying really hard to win a stakes, so this is a big deal for us."

The winner is owned by David and Teresa Palmer and was bred in in Florida by Janet Erwin.

As the winner of the Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies, Liberty Rings earned an automatic entry into one of six juvenile stakes during the Royal Ascot meeting (June 16-20) at Ascot Racecourse in Great Britain, as well as a $25,000 equine travel stipend. "I want to go. Hopefully, I talk them into going," said Palmer of his parents.

Awesome Slew is currently Florida’s top-ranked sire and got the month of May off to an excellent start when R Disaster won the $1 million Derby City Distaff S. (G1) on Derby Day at Churchill Downs.