Mind Control, Magic Michael Capture Stakes at Parx

The tenacity of Mind Control , illustrated this summer with a head upset of Firenze Fire  in the John A. Nerud Stakes (G2), was again on display n the $200,000 Parx Dirt Mile Stakes Sept. 25 at Parx Racing.

Appearing beaten with a sixteenth of a mile to run, as favored Silver State  wrested command to open up a half-length advantage, Mind Control battled back to edge that rival by a head in a duel between two grade 1 winners. Silver State had previously taken the Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap (G1) this year, Mind Control the 2018 Hopeful Stakes (G1).

"He didn't give up, I didn't give up," Velazquez said of the 23-time starter. "When I asked for more, he gave me more.

"I don't remember riding him this long, two-turns. He's been in a mile, a one-turn mile, and then I don't remember him going that far. I always thought he could but we never tried him for a long time and he showed us that he could."

Mind Control rallied from fifth to cover a mile on a fast track in 1:36.59 following early splits of :23.52, :47.16, 1:11.27. The winner returned $7.20 to win.

The class from the two horses showed Saturday, as they pulled clear from the field nearing the wire. Warrior's Charge  ran third after chasing the pace and frontrunning Rock on Luke  faded fourth. Thorny Tale , West Will Power , and Informative  completed the order of finish.

Silver State, farther off the pace than usual, tried rally from last in the field of seven under Ricardo Santana Jr. He uncorked a rally on the second turn and in early stretch but did not sustain his momentum in the race's late stages while drifting somewhat inward.

The winner, owned by Madaket Stables and breeder Red Oak Stable, is a 5-year-old son of Stay Thirsty  . Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher began training the horse this spring, shortly before the Nerud, after making his initial 20 starts for trainer Gregg Sacco.

"Silver State looked like he got the jump on him and it didn't look like we were going to get back up in time," Byron Hughes, Pletcher's assistant. "But Johnny kept driving and the horse has a big heart and it's not the first time he has done something like that, so we were happy with it."

The victory gave Pletcher two stakes victories with Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) contenders in the span of an hour. Shortly before the Parx Mile, Life Is Good  handily won the Kelso Handicap (G2) at Belmont Park | BloodHorse.com Track Profile">Belmont Park over the mile distance.

Mind Control is out of the Lightin N Thunder stakes winner Feel That Fire , a half sister to grade 3-placed stakes winner King For a Day   (Uncle Mo  ) and a full sister to stakes winner Ima Jersey Girl . The mare has produced seven foals, six of them with racing experience, and five winners, including the 2-year-old filly Goddess of Fire  (Mineshaft  ), who ran third in this month's Pocahontas Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs.

Mind Control is her leading money earner with a record of nine wins from 23 starts and a bankroll of $1,413,229.

Video: Parx Dirt Mile S. (BT)

Magic Michael Lands Greenwood Cup

About a half-hour after the Parx Mile, the $200,000 Greenwood Cup produced nearly as close of a result, with Magic Michael  tagging Last Samurai  in the closing strides for a neck victory under Frankie Pennington.

Last Samurai, ridden by Jon Court, finished 1 1/4 lengths clear of Sheer Flattery  in third. Lookin at Roses  was fourth.

In closing from last, Magic Michael finished 1 1/2 miles on the main track in 2:32.01 after fractions of  :24.82, :50.07, 1:16.13, and 1:42.11 set by eventual eighth-place finisher Sea Foam . Magic Michael returned $11 to win.

"The longer I was sitting, the more he was wanting to go, and once I set him up and got him up to third, man, he really took off," said Pennington, who won his second race on the Pennsylvania Derby undercard. "He is very consistent, (trainer) Jamie (Ness), does a great job with him, and I think the more distance the better with this horse and he was right on point."

The winner, a 4-year-old son of Dramedy  owned by Morris E. Kernan Jr., Yo Berbs Racing, and Jagger Inc., began racing for Ness late last fall after he was claimed for $30,000 at Churchill Downs and taken to the northeast. In a prior public sale, he had been a $5,000 purchase at The October Sale at Fasig-Tipton in 2018 by Reineman Bloodstock from the War Horse Place consignment.

"You know, we are local. A big day. Took a little bit of a shot here but the horse seems to do well over this track," Ness said. "We have been pointing to this race for two months. It came up a little stronger than we thought it would. But we are here, took a shot and my jock knows this track real well. I think he won the race for me today."

Bred in Kentucky by Aschinger Bloodstock Holdings, he is out of the unraced Kitalpha  mare Bear All. The dam is now the producer of two graded stakes winners, the other being Night Ops , who captured the 2020 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap (G3). Her five foals of racing age have all started and she has also an unnamed yearling filly by Outwork  .

The $108,00 first-place share of the Greenwood Cup advanced Magic Michael's earnings to $312,343. He is 8-5-0 from 23 starts. 

Video: Greenwood Cup S. (G3)