Global Campaign breezes toward Churchill Downs' Blame Stakes

With Global Campaign so lightly raced, owing to nagging physical issues that prevented him from running more than five times last season, the connections of Sagamore Farm and WinStar Farm are still figuring out what they have in this well-bred colt.

The son of Curlin — out of an A.P. Indy mare who also produced Grade 1 winner Bolt d’Oro — could send another message if he continues training forwardly for Churchill Downs’ $100,000 Blame Stakes on May 23.

Global Campaign worked five furlongs Saturday in 1:01.25 at the Palm Meadows Training Center, not far from Gulfstream Park, where on April 25 he renounced himself by topping a strong allowance field at seven furlongs.

“I thought it was a very competitive group of horses — some solid kind of hard-knocking horses and then a couple coming off the bench,” said Sagamore Farm President Hunter Rankin.

Runner-up Yorkton and third-place Majestic Dunhill are both multiple stakes winners. In fourth, Spinoff exited a layoff after a 3-year-old season in which he placed in the Louisiana Derby (G2) before appearing in two legs of the Triple Crown series.

Global Campaign looped around his competition leaving the turn and drove to a 1 1/2-length victory in the Stanley Hough trainee’s first start since a third in the 2019 Jim Dandy (G2) at Saratoga.

“He hopped at the start, and I don’t know that he was as sharp as he could be,” Rankin said. “We didn’t necessarily pound on him to get to that race. Considering the group and how he trained up to it, we were very, very happy with it.”

Global Campaign also won Belmont Park’s Peter Pan Stakes (G3) last year but campaigned on an inconsistent basis due to foot problems and bone bruising that may have resulted from added stress on his other legs.

Given nearly eight months away from the races, Global Campaign returned a winner.

“I just hope he stays on track because I really believe he’s going to be a good horse this year,” Rankin said.

The Blame, which runs around a one-turn mile, could serve as a local prep for Churchill Downs’ 1 1/8-mile Stephen Foster (G2) on June 27. But it’s Rankin’s hope that Global Campaign excels at the Blame’s distance, propelling him to the Metropolitan Handicap (G1) in June should the New York Racing Association open for business.

Nominations for the Blame and other May 23 stakes at Churchill are due Monday. Sagamore Farm may also be represented in the Matt Winn Stakes (G3) by Necker Island, who was fourth most recently in Gulfstream’s Unbridled Stakes on April 25.

Maxfield is expected to lead the Matt Winn, newly added as a Kentucky Derby points race, while the multiple Grade 3 winner Mr. Money will also be prominent in the Blame.