Leinster, Totally Boss Give Arnold Shakertown Thriller
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Photo: Keeneland/Coady Photography
Leinster (inside) and Totally Boss (orange cap) charge to the line in the Shakertown Stakes at Keeneland
It's probably the first time in his life trainer Rusty Arnold has rooted for a dead heat.
Charging to the line in the $150,000 Shakertown Stakes (G2T) July 11 at Keeneland, the trainer's speedy Leinster was running out of ground as his stablemate, Totally Boss, rallied with a strong outside run.
Leinster held by a head at the wire, giving Arnold not only a thrilling 1-2 finish in the 5 1/2-furlong turf event but two viable contenders for the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) back at the Lexington track in November.
"I've watched (the replay) three times, and I still couldn't tell (who won)," Arnold said. "It was going to work good for me either way, but it would have worked really good for me if it was a dead heat."
Already a track record holder from his 2019 Troy Stakes (G3T) score at Saratoga Race Course, Leinster set course and stakes records Saturday when he stopped the clock in 1:00.86 on turf rated firm.
The 5-year-old son of Majestic Warrior rated fourth off the pace set by 2018 Shakertown winner Bound for Nowhere, who clicked through fractions of :21.16 and :43.55. Bound for Nowhere opened a daylight advantage as five-eighths went in :54.89, but Leinster got the signal to take over from jockey Tyler Gaffalione and charged to the lead with just enough ground to spare.
"(Leinster) broke well," Gaffalione said. "He put himself right in the race. I was able to drop in behind the speed. I had the perfect trip, really. All credit goes to Rusty and his team. He told me when I got to the paddock that (Leinster) was ready today. And he definitely showed it."
Sent off at odds of 10-1, Leinster paid $22.40, $8.60, and $5.40. After Totally Boss came Bound for Nowhere, a neck back in third. The order of finish was completed by Fast Boat, Extravagant Kid, Tell Your Daddy, Corruze, Tiger Blood, Just Might, Texas Wedge, Real News, Shared Legacy, and 5-2 favorite Wildman Jack, who trailed throughout.
Campaigned by Amy Dunne, Brenda Miley, Westrock Stables, and Jean Wilkinson, Leinster improved his earnings to $524,211 with a record of 21-4-6-4. He was bred in Kentucky by Gryphon Investments out of the Royal Academy mare Vassar and is a half brother to two-time Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner Stormy Liberal.
Arnold said he was thrilled with the performance of both horses off their first start of 2020, a May 29 allowance race over five furlongs on the turf at Churchill Downs. Leinster was second in that event, 1 1/4 lengths behind Extravagant Kid, and Totally Boss encountered traffic trouble and finished eighth.
"They both came back well from their one race at Churchill, which they didn't win," Arnold said. "But they were hung up in (delays due to COVID-19) this winter in Florida, and we didn't get them going as early as we wanted. They have really done well here, both horses.
"I think the race today is probably good enough to get them both in (to the Breeders' Cup). But we'll work our way backwards from that. That's where we want them both."