Green Gratto Stuns Fall Highweight Field

Green Gratto, the longest priced horse on the board at 24-1, went to the front and never looked back to win the $250,000 Fall Highweight Handicap (gr. III) Thanksgiving Day at Aqueduct.

The 5-year-old dark bay or brown horse by Here's Zealous —Starship Smokester, by Smokester, got the six furlongs in 1:09.95 and just lasted by a head over the late-running Palace  . Fabulous Kid was third.

Green Gratto, with Kendrick Carmouche up, broke sharply and got the early advantage over Captain Serious and La Verdad. After an opening quarter-mile in :22.29, Green Gratto was able to open up a daylight lead and zipped the half-mile in :44.71.

Captain Serious, on the rail, and La Verdad continued to give chase in early stretch but were unable to gain on the runaway leader, while a host of closers made headway. After five furlongs in :56.87, Green Gratto was tiring but was able to hold on as Palace came up along the rail and Fabulous Kid and Pulling G's rallied from behind.

"I told the trainer, 'I'll just let him roll,' said Carmouche. "That's the only way we're going to win.' And that's the way we won. He ran a good race. Hats off to the trainer, he did it all. I was just a good pilot."

Pulling G's was fourth and was followed by favored Salutos Amigos, La Verdad, and Captain Serious.

Green Gratto, Fabulous Kid, and Pulling G's all carried 124 pounds in the Fall Highweight, first run in 1914. For a long period of time the highweight in the race carried a minimum of 140 pounds. On Nov. 26 Salutos Amigos, last year's winner, carried high weight of 134 pounds.

Green Gratto is trained by Gaston Grant and is owned by Grant and Anthony Grant. Bred in New Jersey by Kaz Hill Farm, Green Gratto won for the fifth time in 36 starts. He came into the Fall Highweight off a nose loss to Fabulous Kid in an allowance/optional claiming race at Nov. 18 at Aqueduct.

Gatson Grant, winning trainer of Green Gratto (No. 5): "It's hard work and very emotional,' said Gaston Grant. "I had this horse since he was a yearling, bought him, and he just kept trying. I knew all along he was the kind of horse to win a graded stakes race because he always showed it in the mornings. It was just a matter of putting it together in the afternoon. He's just one tough guy and there's no quit in him. I really can't say much about it other than to Thank God for this opportunity.

"I wasn't concerned with the week layoff because when he came back the next day it looked like he didn't lift a hoof. He was acting good and we put him on the track and he was training awesome. He came back from last time like he didn't even break a sweat so we figured we'd give him a shot in here.

"We were trying to go to the Cigar Mile until we heard Private Zone was entered but we knew at three-quarters this horse was really tough."

Green Gratto earned his first stakes win in the Fall Highweight. Earlier this year he finished third in the Tom Fool Handicap (gr. III), second in the Carter Handicap (gr. I), and fourth in the Belmont Sprint Championship (gr. I). He has now earned $575,514.

The winner paid $50.50, $19.80, $9.70. Palace paid $7.10 and $4.70, and Fabulous Kid returned $7. The exacta paid $363.

The race was likely the final run for a pair of top New York-breds. The grade I-winning Palace will soon join the stallion roster at  Spendthrift Farm while the four-time grade II winner La Verdad will likely become a broodmare for owner Sheila Rosenblum.



Earlier on the program, LNJ Foxwoods' Constellation won the $150,000 Furlough Stakes for 2-year-old fillies. Placed in the Spinaway Stakes (gr. I) and Matron Stakes (gr. II), Constellation won the six-furlong Furlough by 8 1/4 lengths in 1:10.39 as the 1-2 choice.

A chestnut filly by Bellamy Road   —For Royalty, by Not For Love  , Constellation was bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm. A $155,000 Keeneland September sale yearling buy, LNJ Foxwoods' agents Alex Solis II and Jason Litt paid $800,000 for the filly at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. select sale of 2-year-olds from Northwest Stud. She now has a 2-1-1 mark from four starts and has earned $214,800 for trainer Steve Asmussen.

"She came ready today," said winning rider Irad Ortiz Jr. "She was 100% and was much the best."