Patch Adams earns quality win sprinting in Woody Stephens

There was no clowning around by Patch Adams in Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Woody Stephens Stakes as he defeated a top-class field of 10 3-year-old sprinters at Saratoga.

Co-owned by CHC and breeder WinStar Farm and named for the famous physician and clown, Patch Adams stalked the pace under Luis Saez in the seven-furlong affair on the muddy track before assuming command by the eighth pole.

Click here for Saratoga entries and results.

In adding the race named for Hall of Fame trainer Woody Stephens to his resume, the bay colt scored his first stakes victory for his connections.

Earlier in the year the colt was on the Triple Crown trail and contested two Grade 3 races around two turns, but cutting back in distance did the trick, according to his two-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox.

“It is kind of odd to have a horse that breaks as well as he does going one turn but couldn't get out of the gate going two turns. Once again horses will make you scratch your head sometimes. We kind of scratched our heads this winter and into the spring, but he turned it around at Churchill Downs, and we cut him back, and he responded again today,” said Cox, who also saddled 10th-place finisher Gunmetal.

Saez hustled Patch Adams right out of the gate, and the pair stalked the pace set by Macho Music and Madaket Road through fleet fractions of 22.11, 44.40, and 1:08.73.

Patch Adams, while gaining ground near the quarter pole, was hustled to the outside and came charging into contention. He got in front in the final furlong, drew clear under steady urging from his rider and finished with a time of 1:21.38.

It was 2 1/4 lengths back to Madaket Road, who was piloted by John Velazquez for fellow Hall of Famer Bob Baffert. Big Truzz was another 2 1/4 lengths behind under Hall of Famer Joel Rosario with 2023 champion 2-Year-Old male Citizen Bull completing the superfecta.

T Kraft, Gate To Wire, Macho Music, Chancer McPatrick, Neoequos and Gunmetal rounded out the order of finish. Macho Music and Chancer McPatrick dead-heated for seventh. Colloquial was scratched.

“Luis stayed after him. When I was watching him I was like, well, he's asking him to press the leaders and hoped that he wouldn't give way. He didn't and finished up well," Cox said.

Saez, who won the 2020 Woody Stephens on No Parole, termed the stretch run "pretty exciting" when he was asked about victorious turn of foot.

"This horse I really like him. He was working pretty well, and today he came with a good run,” Saez said. “That was the plan. We wanted to break from there and take a good position, and he did it. He was in a perfect spot the whole way. I was very proud of him. I know he was going to come out of there running, and he did. He found a good spot, and man, when he came to the top of the stretch, he gave me a pretty good turn of foot.”

Madaket Road, despite breaking poorly and then brushing with a rival early on, put up a good fight with Patch Adams but was outfinished near the wire.

“We had a good enough break,” Velazquez said. “He stumbled right in the first jumps. I tried to catch up with that (Macho Music), and I couldn't. Then I got into the clear, and we had a perfect trip. The other horse came home in front and was better than mine.”

Patch Adams sent the loud and clear message Saturday that he is best as a seven-furlong horse. The Grade 1, $500,000 Allen Jerkens Memorial on Aug. 23 at Saratoga is on Cox’s radar for a future target.

“I would say probably one turn, and I don't think there is anything that would make us think about stretching him back out, but we will see how he comes out of it and what everyone else does,” Cox said. “But I would say he has probably found a home around one turn. The ultimate goal would be getting to the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial.”

Elliott Walden, WinStar's president, CEO and racing manager, concurred with the idea of going to the seven-furlong, Grade 1 race Aug. 23 at Saratoga.

“We’ll probably come back for the (Jerkens). He ran kind of quick back here and been at it all year. Gone to Oaklawn. Gone to Tampa. And he’s not a super big horse. He’s a special horse. I think he’s got more there and will be really tough running back. It’s just exciting to win a Grade 1 with a really well-bred colt from the family of Well Armed, a great family that’s been very good to us," Walden said.

Patch Adams returned $8.80 for a $2 bet. The Kentucky-bred son of Into Mischief and Distorted Humor mare Well Humored improved his record to 6: 3-0-1 and increased his lifetime earnings to $497,585 with the $275,000 share of the purse awarded to the winner.