Jackie's Warrior blitzes the field in Churchill Downs Stakes
Jackie's Warrior, last year's champion sprinter, and jockey Joel Rosario made short work of a top-class field when cruising to victory in the Grade 1, $750,000 Churchill Downs Stakes on Saturday at Churchill Downs.
Sent off as the even-money favorite in his second start of the year, Jackie's Warrior shot to the lead and set a pace of 22.76 and 45.20 seconds for the opening half mile while being pressed by a wall of horses, which included last year's Breeders' Cup Sprint winner Aloha West.
Aloha West, who beat Jackie's Warrior in the Breeders' Cup, made an inside bid under Jose Ortiz turning into the stretch but proved no match. Jackie's Warrior continued to motor to the wire before being geared down late to win by three lengths.
The winning time was 1:21.95 for seven furlongs on a track listed as fast.
“He’s an amazing horse," Rosario said of the winner. "The speed that he is able to give you. He is just a strong horse, to get out of there (at the start) — like a quarter horse, and to keep going with that speed. He’s just there for you whenever you ask.”
Reinvestment Risk overtook Aloha West for second with Sir Alfred James completing the superfecta. Jackie's Warrior paid $4.00.
Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, Jackie's Warrior earned last year's Eclipse Award as the top male sprinter when winning four graded stakes in seven starts for owners Kirk and Judy Robison. His lone off-the-board finish came in the Breeders' Cup Sprint.
A 4-year-old colt by Maclean's Music, Jackie's Warrior surpassed $2.3 million in earnings with the score. He kicked off this campaign with a win in the April 16 Count Fleet Handicap (G3) at Oaklawn Park.
“First I can’t say enough about the Robisons putting a champion stallion back in training and letting us enjoy him another year. He’s now a Grade 1 winner at 2, 3 and 4," Asmussen said. "And, the style in which he won today was just beautiful.
"I thought Joel said it best when we were in the paddock just watching him standing there. He said ‘they don’t come along like this all the time, do they’ and they don’t," Asmussen continued. "When you’re the speed of the race, you just stay on the path you want. He’s older, more confident and stronger.”