No Catching Fame and Power in Sir Barton
Image:
Description:
Juddmonte Farms' Fame and Power was allowed to set an uncontested but honest pace and wasn't threatened en route to a quality score in the $100,000 Sir Barton Stakes for 3-year-May 16 at Pimlico Race Course .
With Martin Garcia riding for trainer Bob Baffert, Fame and Power set the tone for what became nothing more than a chase-around. The colt by First Defence out of the Storm Cat mare Storming On grabbed the lead from post 1 and set fractions of :23.51 for the opening quarter-mile, :46.70 for the half-mile, and 1:10.25 for six furlongs as Outlash, Henry Jones, and Bold Conquest tracked him in that order.
Fame and Power was roused entering the stretch in the 1 1/16-mile race and kept going through one mile in 1:35.27. He completed the distance in 1:41.67, less than one second off the track record set by Deputed Testamony in the 1984 Preakness Stakes (gr. I).
Fame and Power, equipped with blinkers for the first time, entered the Sir Barton off of a third-place finish behind Divining Rod and Donworth in the grade III Coolmore Lexington Stakes at Keeneland. He broke his maiden prior to that at Santa Anita Park in his fifth career outing.
"We got close at Keeneland," Baffert said. "This is basically a speed horse that really should be going one turn. Going into today we had to plan a little differently. I told (Garcia) to get out there and make them catch him."
Garcia did as Baffert asked.
"He likes to run on the lead," the jockey said. "My job was to get him to relax, be happy, and be comfortable. When it was time to kick in, he took off."
Fame and Power, bred in Kentucky by Juddmonte's Millsec division., finished three lengths ahead of Bold Conquest, who slipped through along the rail but couldn't gain on the front-runner. Bold Conquest held off Donworth, who rallied for third, by a nose.
Fame and Power paid $6, $3.60, and $2.40 across the board. Bold Conquest returned $4.80 and $2.60, while Donworth paid $2.60 to show. The $2 exacta paid $23 and the $1 trifecta $31.60.