Peace Achieved makes Bourbon third straight win; Breeders' Cup next
Peace Achieved has gotten used to the winner’s circle. And now he’ll take a string of three straight victories into the Breeders’ Cup.
The Mark Casse-trained 2-year-old held off a hard-charging Vitalogy on Sunday at Keeneland to claim the Grade 3, $250,000 Bourbon Stakes. The victory – Casse’s fourth in the race over the last five falls – clinched Peace Achieved a Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf “Win and You’re In” berth.
Joe Minor campaigns Peace Achieved under the JSM Equine banner. The Declaration of War colt entered Sunday’s Keeneland stakes off wins July 27 at Ellis Park in maiden special weight flight, then Aug. 31 at Kentucky Downs in the $500,000 Gainesway Farm Juvenile Stakes.
Those two victories, like Sunday’s came under Miguel Mena. The jockey and colt are now 3-for-3 together.
“Horses, they’re like you or I,” Casse said. “You start winning and it helps. He’s gotten better and better.”
Peace Achieved went off Sunday at 9-1 odds from post No. 10 in the Bourbon, which featured a full field of 14. He went to the front, where he challenged pace-setting Field Pass through fractions of :23.2 and :47.6.
“The boss mentioned the inside being a little softer than the outside,” Mena said of Keeneland’s turf. “We had a great post position and he came out running.”
Peace Achieved ran only a head behind Gear Jockey in the stretch. He took over but had to hold off a desperate charge from 9-2 favorite Vitalogy, the Brendan Walsh trainee who was second by a neck.
Gear Jockey ran third behind the top duo, with Field Pass coming home fourth.
Peace Achieved returned $19.80. He joins Mogul (KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes), Decorated Invader (Summer Stakes), Royal Dornoch (Juddmonte Royal Lodge Stakes) and Victor Ludorum (Qatar Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere) as Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf division automatic qualifiers.
Casse said Peace Achieved will shop off to Santa Anita Park “about a week before” the $1 million, one-mile championship race Nov. 1.
“I think he’ll like Santa Anita,” a smiling Casse said.