Inspector Lynley wins the Saranac Stakes with a late surge

With three of the horses to beat in a six-horse field for today’s Saranac Stakes at Saratoga, the question for many horseplayers was which Chad Brown-trained horse would take home the lion’s share of the $300,000 purse. In mid-stretch it looked like Camelot Kitten, the favored part of the trio, was poised to get the job done, but instead it was a strong late closing burst by Inspector Lynley that would not be denied, carrying him to a head victory in the Grade 3 turf affair.

Sent off at 7-1, and carrying the familiar colors of Stuart S. Janney III, Inspector Lynley was not rushed out of his rail post-position by rider, Joel Rosario. Despite the lack of requesting of early speed from his pilot, the son of Lemon Drop Kid was able to stay close to the early lead, while saving ground on the hedge. The tepid early pace was set by one of Brown’s runners, as Ray’s the Bar inherited the lead, and took the field down the backstretch through opening splits of :23.87 and :48.46.

With the small field, and moderate early pace, the entire group of six stayed within striking distance, and in fact, it was the 8-5 favorite, Camelot Kitten who set up shop in the rear of the field. That would soon change, though, as the three-time stakes winner made a big move on the far turn. The burst put the son of Kitten’s Joy in perfect position on the outside, and just off the leaders as the three-year-old grass runners hit the Saratoga stretch.

Inspector Lynley, who had pretty much kept the status quo with a hedge skimming trip for the first seven furlongs, was ready to make his run from the inside, but the three horses now in front of him gave him nothing to look at but a wall, as he searched for room. While Camelot Kitten battled with Isotherm for the lead, Rosario swung the Shug McGaughey charge several lanes off the rail. As soon as he got out for clear sailing, he quickly went charging after the leaders. Camelot Kitten put up a fight, but could not deny the momentum of the winner.

"He broke beautifully out of the gate,” said Rosario. “There wasn't a lot of speed and I thought that I could hold my spot. He was very game and not too far from the pace, and I thought the race would not be that fast and he is looking at stronger horse's now. He is now putting it all together."

Final time for the nine furlongs on the firm Saratoga turf course was an excellent 1:46.68. With the victory, Inspector Lynley earned his first stakes victory. Often in the picture, but rarely in the winner’s photo until today, he raised his lifetime record to 9-2-3-2, with $276,884 in the bank.

"I'm very pleased,” said the winning trainer. “This horse was coming into the race really well and trained really well. He had some excuses his last three starts. Last start, he was wide in the [Grade 3] Kent and the horse who beat him [American Patriot] came back and ran well in the [Grade 1] Secretariat, so I thought that legitimized that race. He had a good work on the turf here last Friday and I really had some confidence going in. But you always like to be able to find it if they're good enough. I didn't want to run him in a mile and a sixteenth."

As the second longest shot on the board, Inspector Lynley returned $16.00, $6.70, and $3.90 across the board. The exacta over the favorite paid a generous $59.00, while the 1-2-6 triple, with Isotherm in third, was good for $254.50. Ray's The Bar stayed on for fourth, while Strike Midnight and Call Provision completed the order of finish.

Perhaps as a precursor to things to come for his brand new stakes winner, McGaughey added, “This horse wants to run as far as you want to run him."