Inherit The Gold Steals Show at Big A
Inherit the Gold showed his affinity for
Aqueduct Racetrack Sunday afternoon, defeating nine foes to take the
New York Stallion Stakes (NYSS) Thunder Rumble Division, one of four
NYSS races on the afternoon's card.
Darrin's Dilemma led
the way through a quarter-mile in 22.98 and a half-mile in 45.68 in the
$75,000 Thunder Rumble, while Inherit the Gold sat back in sixth.
Carried five wide into the stretch, Inherit the Gold dueled with Pretty
Boy Freud for the last sixteenth of a mile, prevailing by a neck at the
wire. His final time for seven furlongs was 1:22.42 over a fast track.
"Just
super courageous, like every other time," said Jim Hooper, who trains
the 5-year-old son of Gold Token for Glas-Tipp Stable and his wife,
Susanne. "Really, he's an incredible horse. I thought he was so wide I
didn't think he could possibly get the job done out there. He didn't
break very well, but Johnny [Velazquez] actually got him over great."
Inherit
the Gold, now 7-for-8 at Aqueduct, came into the Thunder Rumble off a
seventh-place finish in the October 22 McMahon Adena Empire Classic at
Belmont Park, his first start in five months.
"Of course
it scares you when you come off a race like the first one, but I
figured maybe that was just me," said Hooper. "We really asked him to do
the impossible, and he showed today that if you do right by him, he's
going to be fine. I'm ecstatic."
With Sunday's victory,
Inherit the Gold ran his record to 8-3-3 from 18 starts and boosted his
earnings to $350,935. Sent off as the narrow favorite at 8-5, he
returned $5.50.
Uncle T Seven followed entrymate Pretty
Boy Freud under the wire, and Make Note, Hammock, Silent Appeal, Uncle
Smokey, Darrin's Dilemma, Mr. Windjammer and Ess Shape completed the
order of finish.
One race later, Shane Roars pulled off a
91-1 upset in the $100,000 NYSS Great White Way Division run at six
furlongs for juveniles. After pressing fellow longshot Raffie's Factor
through an opening quarter in 22.24, Shane Roars took the lead and held
off late charges from Think I'm Hooked and Bait to win by a neck in
1:12.19.
A son of Roaring Fever, Shane Roars is
campaigned by Wellspring Stables and trained by Dominic Galluscio.
Junior Alvarado was aboard for the Great White Way, which was also the
colt's maiden score after he finished sixth and fourth in two maiden
claiming events at Saratoga Race Course this summer.
Shane
Roars returned $185.50, significantly contributing to an $89,732 two-day
carryover in the Pick 6 pool. Racing will resume at Aqueduct on
Wednesday, November 16, with the Pick 6 starting in Race 4, which has an
approximate post time of 1:50 p.m.
Favorites ruled the
day in the NYSS events for fillies and mares earlier on the card, with
The Funky Express leading at every call to win the Fifth Avenue Division
for 2-year-old fillies and 3-year-old Lady On the Run edging clear in
the stretch to take the Staten Island Division for older females. Both
fillies won by 1 ¼-length margins.
The Funky Express, a
daughter of Freud, was making her first start for Brooklyn Boyz Stables
and MeB Racing Stables. The Fifth Avenue marked her third consecutive
victory and second in a stakes race. Sent off at 3-5, she returned $3.30
and completed six furlongs in 1:11.54 under apprentice Ryan Curatolo.
"She's
a good filly to be around, she's well-mannered, she does everything
right," said trainer Dominick Schettino. "She's a sweetheart and she
wants to please you. I thought she ran very well. The No. 5 horse
(Vicki's Dancer) never let her get away; I think she dug in gamely."
Vicki's Dancer held second and Lenders Way completed the trifecta.
Lady
On the Run saved ground early on before moving into contention on the
turn and edging away to score her second straight win for
breeder/co-owner Jeffrey Tucker and trainer John Morrison.
"I
was a little concerned because she was a little keyed up, but I managed
to catch some dirt in her face right away, which helped," said winning
rider Mike Luzzi. "Going into the race, I thought there was one horse to
beat. At the three-eighths pole, I said, 'There's one horse to beat,
and that's the one up there [Saltamontes], so let's go!' John did a
great job, and I'm happy to be home in New York."
A
daughter of Ten Most Wanted, Lady On the Run is now 4-4-2 from 12 career
starts with earnings of $210,850. She ran seven furlongs in 1:23.41,
returned $4 as the even-money favorite in the field of seven, and was
followed under the wire by Saltamontes and Page by Page.