Preakness undercard: The King Cheek edges Hozier in Sir Barton
The King Cheek, stretching out around two turns for the first time, dueled the length of the stretch with Grade 2-placed favorite Hozier before edging away approaching the wire to win the $100,000 Sir Barton by a head Saturday at Pimlico Race Course.
The 23rd running of the 1 1/16-mile Sir Barton for 3-year-olds led off a 14-race program featuring 10 stakes, six graded, worth $2.25 million in purses headlined by the 146th Preakness Stakes.
Owned by Morris Kernan and trainer Jamie Ness’s Jagger Inc. and ridden by Jaime Rodriguez, The King Cheek ($10.40) picked up his first career stakes win and second straight victory overall despite his saddle slipping back approaching the stretch. The sophomore Laoban gelding had never raced beyond seven furlongs in his first eight starts.
“I felt (the saddle slipping) at the 3/8ths pole and I thought I was in trouble,” Rodriguez said, “but when you are riding in the moment, you forget about everything and when you pass the wire, you think, ‘Hey, I got the job done.’”
The King Cheek went right to the front after breaking from Post 1 and led through splits of 24.06 and 47.67 seconds with Golden Gulley and 3-5 top choice Hozier in closest pursuit. Hozier, second behind stablemate and top Preakness contender Concert Tour in the March 13 Rebel Stakes (G2), made a run up the rail to draw even at the head of the turn and the two horses hooked up the rest of the way home. Hozier forged a short lead entering the stretch, but The King Cheek continued to battle and inched clear in 1:42.81 over a fast main track.
It was 9½ lengths back to Romp in third, followed by Golden Gulley. Market Cap stumbled and went to his knees when the starting gate opened, dropping jockey Johan Rosado. Both horse and rider were uninjured.
Ness claimed The Big Cheek out of a sixth-place finish last September at Delaware Park and won a maiden claimer in his subsequent start. The King Cheek had finished off the board in his two previous stakes attempts, both against fellow New York-breds.
“You know what's funny? We dropped a claim on this horse ($25,000 on Sept. 30 at Delaware Park),” Ness said. “It was a five-way shake, and he ran terrible. I was with my owner, and I go, ‘Go lose the shake.' And then he comes out with the slip, and I go, ‘Aww.’
“And now here we are. So, you just never know. I've claimed a lot of horses and you just never know."
Sir Barton won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont in 1919, becoming the first horse to sweep what wouldn’t become known as the Triple Crown until Gallant Fox matched the feat in 1930. The race returned to the Preakness undercard this year after not being run when the stakes schedule was adjusted and delayed to last fall amid the coronavirus pandemic.
T D Dance waltzes to James W. Murphy victory
Madaket Stables, Wonder Stable, Paul Farr and Team Hanley’s T D Dance saved ground racing inside early, split horses in mid-stretch to gain the lead and sprinted clear to a 3¾-length triumph in Saturday’s $100,000 James W. Murphy at Pimlico Race Course.
The 56th running of the Murphy for 3-year-olds at one mile on the grass was the fourth of 10 stakes on Saturday’s Preakness card.
Trained by Brad Cox, T D Dance ($3.80) completed the distance in 1:34.89 over a firm turf course to give Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano his third career Murphy victory. Castellano also won in 2010 in Beau Choix and 2014 with Wallyanna.
T D Dance settled in fourth as 11-1 long shot Charles Chrome took the field through splits of 23.28 seconds, 47.61 and 1:12.14 pressed by Kasim and Indian Lake, the latter riding a two-race win streak. Castellano was able to find a seam once straightened for home and shot through to give the Can the Man colt – favored at 4-5 – his second straight win and first in a stakes.
“We had a great trip, a dream trip,” Castellano said. “We saved all the ground on the first turn. Even though it was a small field, I covered him up on the first turn. On the far turn, he cut the corner and finished up and galloped out strong. He took off when that seam opened. I told Brad that he could be really competitive at a longer distance.”
Arzak came with a late run down the center of the track to catch Charles Chrome by a neck for second, and it was another neck back to Indian Lake in fourth.
T D Dance debuted with a two-length maiden victory on the Indiana Grand grass last October, then was beaten a neck first time against winners in an off-the-turf event in December, both races coming at one mile. Fifth in the 1 1/16-mile Black Gold Feb. 27 to open his 3-year-old season, he was a popular 1¾-length optional claiming allowance winner March 27 at Fair Grounds in her previous start.
“I thought this made a little bit more sense at this time of his career,” Cox said of cutting back to a mile. “Hopefully, we can compete with the horses on the NYRA circuit in the 3-year-old division. That is the goal.”
The James W. Murphy pays homage to the late trainer that won nearly 1,400 races and more than 50 stakes and $24 million in purses starting in 1965. He was named the MTHA’s Trainer of the Year in 2006, three years before he died at age 82.
Chub Wagon keeps rolling in Skipat
Daniel Lopez and George Chestnut’s Chub Wagon, undefeated through her first five starts, kept her perfect record intact with an uncharacteristic come-from-behind victory in Saturday’s $100,000 Skipat at Pimlico Race Course.
The 28th running of the Skipat for fillies and mares 3-and-up sprinting six furlongs was the fifth of 10 stakes on the Preakness card.
Ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. for Parx-based trainer Guadalupe Preciado, Chub Wagon ($4.40) had led at every point of call in each of her races but was outrun for the lead by multiple stakes winner Dontletsweetfoolya, who ran a quarter-mile in 22.87 seconds and the half in 46.05, with French Empire – a winner of her last four races – racing second and Chub Wagon settled in third.
Ortiz tipped Chub Wagon outside at the top of the stretch with sights set on Dontletsweetfoolya, who had a five-race win streak snapped when seventh in the Feb. 20 Barbara Fritchie (G3), her most recent start. The bay daughter of Hey Chub took over the top spot nearing the eighth pole and opened to win by two lengths in 1:09.71 over a fast main track.
“She relaxed more,” Ortiz said. “I broke out of there, I see the other horse had some speed, so I just went to Plan B. She relaxed. She did great. She was all class. When I asked her to run, she just went on like a nice horse.”
Casual, shuffled back soon after the start, came flying late to edge Club Car by a nose for second, with Dontletsweetfoolya fourth by 2½ lengths over Never Enough Time. Call On Mischief and French Empire completed the order of finish.
Chub Wagon, bred in Pennsylvania by co-owner Chestnut and Joe-Dan Farm, won her first five races by 41¼ combined lengths. The Skipat was her second career stakes win and first in open company following the seven-furlong Unique Bella against state-breds April 27 at Parx.
"We're going to see how she comes back and probably we'll take one step a little higher,” Preciado said. “She responds every time we ask her to.”
Bred in Connecticut, Skipat won 26 of 45 career races over six years, earning $614,215 between 1977 and 1981. Two of her wins came in the Barbara Fritchie, in 1979 and 1981, the latter coming the year after she had been retired and bred and brought back to the races.
Firecrow blazes to Jim McKay Turf Sprint win
Robert LaPenta and Harlow Stables’ Firecrow put his blazing speed on display Saturday at Pimlico Race Course, establishing a new course record in earning his first career stakes victory with a 9-1 upset in the $100,000 Jim McKay Turf Sprint.
The 16th running of the McKay, a five-furlong dash for 3-year-olds and up, was the sixth of 10 stakes, six graded, worth $2.25 million in purses on a spectacular 14-race program headlined by the 146th Preakness Stakes (G1), Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown.
Trained by Ron Moquett and ridden by Joel Rosario, Firecrow ($21.60) was making his 14th career start but just his third on the turf and first since November 2019. He had raced at Pimlico before, breaking his maiden in a six-furlong dirt sprint on the undercard of the 144th Preakness.
“We were just waiting,” Moquett said. “We thought he was very good on the turf. But they don’t have any lawn at Oaklawn, and we weren’t shipping all the way to Fair Grounds from there when the purses are so much better at Oaklawn. And he’s capable on the dirt. We figured we’d get back around to it, and today was the day. It showed he belonged.”
The Critical Way, the 8-5 favorite in a field of 13 coming off a third-place finish in the 5 ½-furlong Shakertown (G3) April 3 at Keeneland, rocketed from the gate and went straight to the lead but was quickly joined up front by Firecrow on his outside as they raced through fractions of 21.92 and 43.95 seconds. Under a hand ride from Rosario, Firecrow drew even in mid-stretch and got up in the final strides to win by neck.
Completed Pass, the 2019 Jim McKay winner who broke a step slow, rallied late for third, 1 ¼ lengths behind The Critical Way. Boldor was another 1 ¼ lengths back in fourth, while defending champion Hollis – who beat Completed Pass by a neck in 2020 – finished seventh.
The winning time of 55.30 seconds over a firm turf course broke the previous mark of 55.66 seconds set by 6-year-old Ageless on May 15, 2015 winning the 2016 The Very One. Later that day, American Pharoah would win the Preakness on his way to becoming the first Triple Crown champion since 1978.
Firecrow, a gelded 5-year-old son of Maclean’s Music, had only faced stakes company twice before, both this year on dirt. He was fifth by three lengths in the five-furlong Sam’s Town Jan. 4 at Delta Downs and fourth after setting the pace in the six-furlong Hot Springs March 13 at Oaklawn Park.
The Jim McKay Turf Sprint pays homage to the late Hall of Fame broadcaster and Philadelphia native who considered Baltimore his home. McKay first gained notoriety as host of ABC’s ‘Wide World of Sports’ in 1961 and then wide acclaim as voice of the Olympics, winning 13 Emmy Awards and the Eclipse Award of Merit. He was instrumental in conceiving and launching the groundbreaking Maryland Million in 1986, and passed away in 2008 at 86.