Won and They’re In - Maxfield and Letruska Impress on Closing Day at Churchill Downs
Last Saturday’s Closing Day at Churchill Downs concluded the track’s 38-day Spring Meet and featured seven stakes races, four of which were graded. The day was highlighted by two races in the Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series. Temperatures hitting 90 degrees didn’t prevent a large crowd from coming out to watch a couple of the leading contenders for the 2021 World Championships.
The Stephen Foster (G2) Stakes
Maxfield soars to victory in the Stephen Foster.
Photo by Tom Ferry.
An automatic berth to the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) was on the line with the 40th running of the $600,000 Stephen Foster (G2). All eyes were on the four-year-old Maxfield, winner of six of seven career starts including this year’s (G2) Alysheba Stakes at Churchill during Kentucky Derby weekend.
Over the years, four horses have used their Stephen Foster triumph as a springboard to a Breeders’ Cup Classic win in November: Black Tie Affair (’91), Awesome Again (’98), Blame (’10), and Gun Runner (’17). Two others, Curlin (’08) and Fort Larned (’13), won the Classic the year following their Foster wins.
A field of nine went to post which, in addition to Maxfield, also included graded stakes winners Silver Dust, Warrior’s Charge and Chess Chief. It was a competitive race until the final turn when Maxfield and jockey Jose Ortiz unleashed a brilliant turn of foot to grab the lead and sail down the stretch to a comfortable 3-1/4 length victory over Warrior’s Charge, clocking 1-1/8 miles in 1:48:53. South Bend, Chess Chief, Empty Tomb, Necker Island, Visitant and Silver Dust completed the order of finish, respectively.
Brendan Walsh trains Maxfield for Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum’s Godolphin and was impressed by the effort.
“It was a really good performance, “ Walsh said. “It looks like he continues to improve all the time. Thankfully, now he’s been good and healthy. Our goal has been to get a good string of races into him and that’s starting to happen. I’m glad to get over another obstacle today. We’ll hope he comes out of today’s race in good order and we’ll move on to the next one.”
We are four months away from the 2021 World Championships, however, Maxfield must be considered, along with Mystic Guide, Silver State and Happy Saver, as an early leading contender for this year’s Classic.
The Fleur de Lis (G2) Stakes
Letruska and jockey Jose Ortiz take a moment.
Photo by Tom Ferry.
She stormed onto the radars of American horse racing fans with her thrilling upset victory over two-time Eclipse Award champion Monomoy Girl in April’s Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) and, since then, Letruska has not looked back.
Following the Apple Blossom, the five-year-old daughter of Super Saver was off to Belmont Park and the June 5 running of the Ogden Phipps Stakes (G1). Letruska avenged her only loss of the year to Shedaresthedevil when she defeated the 2020 Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) champion and three others in a commanding gate-to-wire triumph.
Just 21 days later, trainer Fausto Gutierrez decided she was ready for more and entered her in Saturday’s Fleur de Lis Stakes. Sent to post as the 3-5 favorite, Letruska mimicked her performance from the Ogden Phipps and took command of the race from the outset through quarter-mile splits of :24.53, :48.19, and 1:11.36. She opened her lead on the final turn, widened in the stretch, dismissing Antoinette and the remainder of the field, and won in a comfortable 1:48.57 for 1-1/8 miles.
Letruska goes gate-to-wire to capture the Fleur de Lis.
Photo by Tom Ferry.
As a three-year-old, Letruska was a champion in Mexico, having won her first six career starts by a combined 40½ lengths at Hipodromo De Las Americas in Mexico City. She is now the frontrunner for American championship honors as her victory in the Fleur de Lis earned her a “Win and You’re In” berth to the $4 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G!) on November 6 at Del Mar.
“There was a little question mark coming into this race off three weeks rest, but I knew Fausto is a great trainer and he’d have her ready,” said Letruska’s jockey Jose Ortiz. “She is a really nice mare and she was ready today. She got the front pretty easy and she was comfortable the entire way around there.”
What is next for Letruska is yet to be determined, but racing fans must be wondering if her Breeders’ Cup future will include a rematch with Monomoy Girl in the Distaff or a possible battle with the boys in the Classic.
The Best of the Rest
Set Piece (right) defeats Somelikeithotbrown (left) in a thrilling Wise Dan Stakes.
Photo by Tom Ferry.
Fans were treated to a thrilling finish in the 32nd running of the $300,000 Wise Dan Stakes (G2). Juddmonte’s Set Piece (GB) showed off his late-rallying style when he weaved through traffic down the stretch to pass Somelikeithotbrown for the victory. Set Piece’s final time of 1:40.50 over the 1-1/16 turf course was just .24 off the stakes record set by Kasaqui (ARG) in 2017.
Double Thunder wins easily in the Bashford Manor Stakes.
Photo by Tom Ferry.
Saturday’s racing also showcased some promising juveniles.
Two-year-old males were highlighted in the 120th running of the Bashford Manor Stakes (G3). A field of ten went to post for the six-furlong race. Trained by Todd Pletcher, Double Thunder rallied from last to first under jockey John Velazquez to defeat Vodka N Water in only his second career start.
“I knew there would be a lot of speed in the race and wanted to keep him close - just not last,” said Velazquez. “You don’t expect a two-year-old to handle things like that as well as he did. He took dirt and handled it well and I think he can move forward a lot from that.”
Behave Virginia pulls away late to triumph in the Debutante.
Photo by Tom Ferry.
The 120th running of the $150,000 Debutante Stakes saw the fastest-finishing time in 14 years as Behave Virginia defeated a field of seven other juvenile fillies. Trained by Kenny McPeek and ridden by Brian Hernandez Jr., Behave Virginia ran down Wicked Halo and 7-5 favorite Ontheonesandtwos to complete the six-furlong race in a torrid 1:09.83, just off the stakes record of 1:09.27 set in 2007 by Rated Fiesty.
In Saturday afternoon’s two other stakes, Silverton Hill LLC’s homebred Next wired his opponents to capture the $150,000 War Chant Stakes. And in the day’s final race, yet another gate-to-wire performance was turned in when G. Watts Humphrey Jr.’s three-year-old filly Navratilova held off a late-charging Toby’s Heart and New Boss to win the $150,000 Tepin Stakes.
Racing at Churchill Downs will resume on September 16 and fans should have a better sense over the next ten weeks if some of the stars and prospects they watched last Saturday are contenders or pretenders for this year’s Championships at Del Mar.