Hudson Steele Razor Sharp in Dixie
Roger J. Weiss’ Hudson Steele won for the fifth time in seven tries on the turf Saturday at Pimlico Race Course, registering his biggest score of them all in the $300,000 Jagermeister Dixie Stakes (G2).
Todd Pletcher trains the son of Johannesburg, who won the Henry Clark Stakes over this course on April 28. In the Dixie, he carried Javier Castellano to a 2 ½ -length victory in 1:47.29 for the nine-furlong distance over the firm turf. Humble and Hungry finished second and Forte Dei Marmi was third.
Hudson Steele won the Jersey Derby in 2010 but only started twice in 2011. He is two for two in 2012.
Jagermeister Dixie Stakes Quotes
Todd Pletcher (winning trainer, Hudson Steele) – “He was loaded up the whole way. Javy found a seam at the top of the stretch and he responded and fired. It was a real big effort.”
Javier Castellano (winning jockey, Hudson Steele) – “He traveled so good. The pace was pretty good for him. It worked out perfectly because he was ready to move when I wanted. He exploded. It was amazing. He was so strong. I really liked the way he did it.”
Ignacio Correas (trainer, Humble and Hungry, 2nd) – “He was sitting on a big race. I wish I had more like him. He ran a big race.”
Jose Lezcano (jockey, Humble and Hungry, 2nd) – “He ran very good. He broke well and we got good position. It’s just that the other horse kept on going.”
Mike Smith (jockey, Forte Dei Marmi, 3rd) – “We had a bad start. He stumbled right out of the gate which made us a step slow and probably cost us second. Once he straightened we were clear and I had no problems the rest of the way.”