Gulfstream: Skippylongstocking, Wolfie’s Dynaghost win stakes

Skippylongstocking fought off a stretch-long outside challenge by Poster to prevail by a head in Saturday's $150,000 Harlan's Holiday (G3) at Gulfstream Park, earning the 6-year-old campaigner a berth in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) on Jan. 25.

The 1 1/16-mile stakes for 3-year-olds and up, a prep for the 10th running of the 1 1/8-mile Pegasus at Gulfstream, highlighted an 11-race program with five stakes, including the $200,000 Fort Lauderdale (G3), a 1 1/8-mile turf stakes for 3-year-olds and up that served as a prep for the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1).

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The overachieving son of Exaggerator, who captured the 2022 Harlan's Holiday late in his 3-year-old season and owned by Daniel Alonso, entered Saturday's renewal off a pair of disappointing efforts, finishing seventh in the Aug. 2 Whitney (G1) at Saratoga and eighth in the Aug. 22 Charles Town Classic (G2), in which he experienced the thumps, a spasmic contraction of the diaphragm similar to hiccups in humans.

"He came back, and you never know if they're going to come back. When they run two bad races, you never know. You try to observe what he's telling you, and he was training as good as he has ever trained in his life," trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. said. "He's 6 going on 7, but trust me, his works were as good as he ever worked, and we were quietly optimistic that he would run well. But you never know. I think you have to ride the horse patient. I think that's one of the keys to him. Apart from the thumps last time, we sent him hard against a huge bias that day, and today he redeemed himself."

Skippylongstocking, who captured the Gold Cup (G2) at Santa Anita in his start prior to his two most recent disappointments, received a patient, well-judged ride from Tyler Gaffalione, who saved ground following his pacesetting stablemate Hold My Bourbon around the first turn and along the backstretch past solid fractions of 22.87 and 45.95 seconds for the first half-mile. As Hold My Bourbon, pressed by Con Compania, began to tire on the turn for home, Skippylongstocking dropped back slightly but quickly recovered under Gaffalione, who made a three-wide move into the stretch but was immediately joined on the outside by Poster, the 3-2 favorite ridden by Flavien Prat.

The stage was set for an epic stretch battle between the veteran multiple graded-stakes winner and Godolphin's 3-year-old colt who had returned from a seven-month layoff with an impressive allowance victory at Churchill Downs. Poster put up a huge fight under Prat, but Skippylongstocking called on all of his experience to fight off the challenge.

"I'm so proud of him. All the credit goes to Saffie and his team. I got on him two weeks ago and Saffie said he'd been doing better than ever. The second we got on the track he warmed up so good, I knew he was going to run a big one for us," Gaffalione said. "He battled the whole way – a gutsy performance. I'm very proud of him."

Skippylongstocking ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.05 to win his 10th graded stakes during a career in which he has earned more than $3.7 million.

"He got his momentum stopped. He ran into the back of my other horse that was backing up. Prat did a good job of seeing him there and actually waiting to make sure he got stuck, but Tyler was able to split," Joseph said. "Poster had all the momentum and then he had to kind of dig and rally. It's a gutsy performance, and that's the kind of horse he is. That's why he's had the career he's had, because he has the heart. That's something you can't teach."

Skippylongstocking, the 2-1 co-second choice with Hold My Bourbon on Saturday, finished third in last season's Pegasus World Cup, won by Joseph stablemate White Abarrio.

"If the draw's good, he can win the Pegasus – there's no doubt about it. This year he ran huge against White Abarrio from a terrible post," Joseph said. "If he draws good and gets the right setup, it's not impossible. We'll see."

Eoin Harty-trained Poster, who was knocked off the Road to the Kentucky Derby with a condylar fracture of his right front leg in the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) in March, finished 5 1/2 lengths clear of third-place finisher Catalytic.

Wolfie’s Dynaghost shatters record in Fort Lauderdale

Wolfie's Dynaghost dug in through the stretch after setting a testing early pace to repel a stubborn Cugino for a record-setting victory in the Grade 3, $200,000 Fort Lauderdale at Gulfstream Park on Saturday.

The 69th running of the Fort Lauderdale for 3-year-olds and up going 1 1/8 miles on the grass anchored a Pegasus Preview Day program featuring five stakes, two graded, worth $750,000 in purses.

Ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. for trainer Brian Lynch, Wolfie's Dynaghost ($3.80) completed the distance in 1:43.42 over a firm turf course to shatter the previous track record of 1:44.45 set by Irish-bred mare Warm Heart, who carried 118 pounds in winning the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1) in 2024.

According to Equibase statistics, the final time also set a North American record for 1 1/8 miles on the grass, surpassing 5-year-old Kostroma's 1:43.92 established Oct. 20, 1991, at Santa Anita. Kostroma, also bred in Ireland, carried 117 pounds. Wolfie's Dynaghost carried 126 pounds as co-topweight with Cugino in the Fort Lauderdale.

"Irad told me, 'You did all the hard work and I was just the driver,'" Lynch said. "It's lovely to see an old horse like that come into himself and get better and better with racing."

Woodslane Farm's millionaire homebred gelding, in the best form of his life at age 7, earned his third straight victory, his 14th overall, 10th in a stakes and third against graded company from 32 career starts, effectively punching his ticket to the 1 1/8-mile Pegasus Turf on Jan. 25. The bay son of Hall of Famer Ghostzapper has had success on Pegasus Day before, winning back-to-back editions of the Carousel Club overnight handicap over the Tapeta course on the 2022 and 2023 undercards for previous trainers Tom Albertrani and Jonathan Thomas.

"No doubt," Lynch said about pointing to the Pegasus Turf for 4-year-olds and up. "This race was a great steppingstone for it and to run the way he ran today, I think he deserves it."

The win also allowed Ortiz to further pad his single-season earnings record and become the first rider to reach the $40 million mark.

"I've had a great year. Thanks to my agent [Steve Rushing] and everyone who supported me the whole year," Ortiz said. "We're not done yet. We're going to keep working hard and finish the year strong."

Breaking from post 2 as the 4-5 favorite in a field of eight older horses, Wolfie's Dynaghost pulled Ortiz to the front where they led through a quarter-mile in 22.34 seconds and a half in 45.84, pressed on their right hip by Quatrocento. Cugino, riding a two-race win streak, saved ground on the inside in third, with millionaire Chasing the Crown racing in the clear in fourth.

The top group closed ranks after six furlongs went in 1:09.09, but Wolfie's Dynaghost remained tenacious on the lead, especially when Cugino tipped off the rail and was set down for a drive by jockey Flavien Prat. Wolfie's Dynaghost had something in reserve and gained separation from his lone challenger to win by three-quarters of a length.

"He broke on his own. I didn't do too much. He has speed so Brian told me, 'Try to make the lead if you can,'" Ortiz said. "He broke sharp. I let him find his rhythm. He came back to me. He relaxed so well. After that I let him do his thing and relax until it was time to roll. He was very professional. When we made the second turn he was traveling the same way as he was on the backstretch. Turning for home, I asked him and he exploded."

Cugino finished 2 1/4 lengths ahead of Beach Gold in third. They were followed by Divin Propos, Chasing the Crown, Quatrocento, Steal Sunshine and Siege of Boston. Defending champion Major Dude and Naptown were scratched.

Wolfie's Dynaghost pushed his career bankroll over $1.3 million winning his second straight graded race following the 1 1/8-mile River City (G3) on the Churchill Downs turf Nov. 8 in his first start for Lynch. It was his fourth win in the last five starts including the Prince George's County, also going nine furlongs, June 28 on the grass at Laurel.

"He's got an aura of confidence about him right now. When you see a horse run the first quarter in 22 and change and have his ears pricked like a deer in the meadow going down the backside, you know they're pretty comfortable and you know they're feeling good," Lynch said. "I thought it was a very good field of horses and I thought to go as hard as he did early and to finish up as strong as he did, there's no doubt he's in very good form right now."

Named for the famed coastal city 14 miles north of Gulfstream, the Fort Lauderdale has seen 2020 winner Largent go on to run second in the 2021 Pegasus Turf and 2019 winner Instilled Regard finish third in the 2020 Pegasus Turf.