Jackie's Warrior Soars to Gallant Bob Victory
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Photo: Nikki Sherman/EQUI-PHOTO
Jackie's Warrior wins the Gallant Bob Stakes at Parx Racing
Jackie's Warrior continued to make his case as the top 3-year-old sprinter in the country with a dominating victory in the $300,000 Gallant Bob Stakes (G3) Sept. 25 at Parx Racing.
With Joel Rosario aboard, Kirk and Judy Robison's son of Maclean's Music soared to his third straight graded victory. He has won four of six starts this year while finishing no worse than third, all in graded company.
After breaking well from the outside post in a field of five, Jackie's Warrior allowed Real Talk to briefly take the lead as they approached the first quarter in a swift :21.97, then quickly shook off his challenger through a :44.15 half.
Coming through the stretch, Jackie's Warrior in control as Rosario looked around four times for the competition, then wrapped up on the colt en route to a 6 3/4-length victory while covering the six furlongs 1:08.64 on a fast track.
"That was nice," Rosario said. "That is a nice horse, he was enjoying what he was doing out there. I mean, he is just a fast horse. He goes fast and he goes faster. I didn't have to ask him for much. Maybe in the beginning a little bit. Things are easy when you are on a horse like him. He was not tired at all."
This was the Steve Asmussen trainee's seventh stakes victory, including the Aug. 28 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course, where he finished a neck ahead of Life Is Good , who came back to win the Kelso Handicap (G2) at Belmont Park earlier on Saturday. While Life is Good is being considered for the Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1), Jackie's Warrior will head to the TVG Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1), both at Del Mar.
"He's very exciting to watch," said Asmussen, a Hall of Famer. "What a very special horse he's been. He's run some game races and obviously we're hoping it's the ideal prep for the Breeders' Cup Sprint. He ran so valiantly with Life Is Good. They both ran such a good race that day. We just felt that this race would give him more time to the Breeders Cup, and it was the right thing to do."
Trainer Steve Asmussen applauds Jackie’s Warrior after winning the Gallant Bob Stakes
With an 8-1-1 record from 11 starts and earnings of $1,513,964, Jackie's Warrior was bred by J & J Stables in Kentucky out of the A. P. Five Hundred mare Unicorn Girl and is her lone stakes winner from her first three registered foals. Unicorn Girl also has a 2-year-old filly named Lenni Girl by Candy Ride and a yearling American Pharoah colt. She was bred to Into Mischief for 2022.