What’s in a name?

In the case of Wet Paint, one of the nation’s leading 3-year-old fillies as the Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Santa Anita in November come into view, there is a self-effacing woman behind the name who tells a funny story with a messy end.

The wet paint faux pas. (Courtesy of Tammy Masterson)

That woman is Tammy Masterson, who was thrilled to be at Saratoga Race Course to watch Essential Quality win the 2021 Runhappy Travers Stakes on behalf of Godolphin, her employer for 22 years.

“It was the first big race I’d been to and I was just very excited that we won,” she said. “After that, we go to the Champagne Room and the adrenaline was flowing and it was really just a fun time.”

Part of the rich tradition of the Travers, the famed “Mid-Summer Derby,” is that a canoe and a jockey statue are painted in the colors of the winning owner. As Masterson and her co-workers left the track, a member of the group spotted the freshly-painted statue.

“Oh, wow!” Masterson exclaimed. “I’ve got to get my picture taken with that.”

And she was off, moving as fast as she hopes Wet Paint runs in the Grade 1, $600,000 Alabama Stakes this Saturday at Saratoga. She was so swept up in the moment that she failed to hear her friends shouting, “Wet paint! Don’t touch it! Wet paint!”

Painter Robin Schumacher, who had just put the finishing touches on her handiwork, looked on in disbelief as Masterson, 63, quickly knelt and put her hand on the statue’s shoulder. Only then did she realize what the shouting was about. Her hand was filled with royal blue paint, matching the color of one of the world’s most famous racing silks.

Masterson, Godolphin’s housing manager, apologized profusely to Schumacher, whose work was no longer done. The painter returned to tape a sign to the statue that read, “Wet paint.”

Masterson had reason to call Schumacher about other business some time after that. She began the conversation by saying, “I’m the lady who touched the jockey statue. You’ve got to remember me.”

The wet paint aftermath. (Courtesy of Tammy Masterson)

“Oh, yeah,” Shumacher replied. “I remember you.”

Vicky Van Camp, Godolphin’s racing research coordinator, was present for Masterson’s faux pas. It immediately came to mind when it was time to name a filly sired by 2010 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Blame out of the Street Cry mare Sky Painter. And that is how the name “Wet Paint” came into being.

“Tammy was an inspiration for sure,” Van Camp said. “She’s such a wonderful person and such a key team member for us.”

Van Camp had no idea that the baby would blossom into a winner of five of nine career starts with a pair of runner-up efforts for purse earnings of $1,057,175. The bay 3-year-old is putting together a strong season that can make her a major player in the $2 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff on Nov. 4 at Santa Anita.

She launched her sophomore campaign in sizzling fashion at Oaklawn Park, sweeping the Martha Washington, Grade 3 Honeybee, and Grade 3 Fantasy Stakes. She went off as the favorite in the May 5 Longines Kentucky Oaks but finished fourth, then placed second in the Monomoy Girl Stakes at Ellis Park before rebounding in a big way. She was most impressive in winning the Grade 1, $500,000 Coaching Club American Oaks on July 22 at Saratoga.

“It was huge to get a Grade 1 with her,” Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox said. “She accomplished so much this winter at Oaklawn, three big races and then she ran well in the Kentucky Oaks. She was very unlucky probably not to be third.”

A twist to the story is that Wet Paint, unlike the good-natured woman who unwittingly provided her name, is never in a rush. Cox always urges regular rider Flavien Prat to take his time with her. As he put it, “Just let her break and find her way around there and when she starts picking up, just keep her out of trouble.”

Wet Paint after winning CCA Oaks. (Eclipse Sportswire)

Wet Paint takes care of the rest. When it looked as though front-running Sacred Wish was about to pull an upset in the Coaching Club American Oaks, Wet Paint dug deep to overtake her rival by a desperate neck as an appreciative crowd roared in approval.

Masterson said of the Grade 1 triumph at Saratoga, “We all thought it was fitting because that is where she got her name. Hopefully, she’ll do it again soon.”

She was referring, of course, to the 1 ¼-mile Alabama on Saturday. Although it is extremely difficult to string together consecutive Grade 1 scores at Saratoga, Cox is optimistic. “A mile and a quarter is definitely something she is going to be able to handle based on her running style and showing that she likes Saratoga,” he said.

Masterson plans to watch – at a safe distance from her Kentucky home.