Majestic City Strong in Lone Star Handicap
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Bloom Racing Stable's Majestic City made his trip from California to Texas worthwhile with a wire-to-wire victory in the $200,000 Lone Star Handicap (gr. III) at Lone Star Park May 25.
It was the first victory since late October 2013 for the 6-year-old horse by City Zip out of the Meadowlake mare It'schemistrybaby, and his first win in six starts at the distance of 1 1/16 miles.
Ridden by Chuck Lopez for trainer Richard Baltas, Majestic City seemed to relish a track made sloppy by mid-afternoon storms. He set reasonable fractions of :24.01 for the opening quarter-mile, :47.06 for a half-mile, and 1:11.43 for six furlongs while being tracked by Cy Seven and Carve in the five-horse field.
Carve, the favorite in the wagering after a second-place finish in the Oaklawn Handicap (gr. II) in April, made his bid for the lead on the far turn and appeared to grab a slight advantage before the mile mark in 1:36.82, but Majestic City fought back to regain the lead and draw away to win by two lengths over Carve in 1:43.31 for the distance. Second choice Tapiture, who broke poorly, rallied for third but didn't threaten the top two.
Majestic City, bred in Kentucky by Trackside Farm, Robert Evans, and Helen Evans, had placed in one race on an off dirt track; he finished second to Golden Lad in the 2014 Razorback Handicap (gr. III) at Oaklawn Park.
"He was going easy enough underneath me," Lopez said of Majestic City. "When we got to the eighth-pole, he dug in. He's gritty. He did all the work."
Baltas noted Majestic City had several good works before his trip to Texas. He said he was looking for a race for the gelding and settled on the Lone Star Handicap.
"We're very happy with him," Baltas said. "We didn't know those horses would be in there," he said in reference to multiple graded-stakes winners Carve and Tapiture.
When asked for his thoughts on the race, Jeff Bloom of Bloom Racing said: "We've been to Lone Star before. This means so much to us."
Majestic City, third choice in the wagering, paid $15, $4.60, and $2.40 across the board. Carve returned $2.40 and $2.10, while Tapiture was worth $2.10.
Majestic City has now earned more than $560,000 in 25 starts.