Ageless Hogy Stretchs Out to Take Canadian Turf

Michael Hui's Hogy, a durable 9-year-old millionaire gelding, surged away from seven younger rivals through the stretch March 3 to capture the $150,000 Canadian Turf Stakes (G3T) at Gulfstream Park.

A multiple stakes winner at sprint distances, Hogy successfully carried his class around two turns in the one-mile Canadian Turf to register his 19th career victory by 3 3/4-lengths, while giving jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. his fourth victory of the afternoon.

Sent off at 5-1 odds, Hogy rated kindly behind a hotly contested pace set by Conquest Sandman and pressed by Blind Ambition. The gelded son of Offlee Wild saved ground before he slipped to the outside at the top of the stretch and drew away powerfully. Galleon Mast, the 5-2 favorite ridden by Luis Saez, rallied to finish second after encountering traffic at the top of the stretch, 1 1/4-lengths ahead of March and jockey Tyler Gaffalione.

"It was great. There was a strong pace up front and Irad saved all the ground, tipped him out, and he came roaring home," trainer Mike Maker said of Hogy. "At his age, to get his 19th win in 50 starts, it's just incredible. I kept asking Mike (Hui), 'I'd sure like to stretch him out.' There was really no sprint and the five-eighths wasn't ideal for him last time here, so we wanted to give it a shot."

A winner of the Sept. 9 Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint (G3T) after being claimed for $80,000 out of his previous start at Saratoga Race Course, Hogy ran a mile over a firm turf in 1:35.28 while boosting his career bankroll to $1,321,837. He was bred in Kentucky by Dr. John E. Little out of the Petionville mare Floy.

Earlier on the card, trainer Jimmy Jerkens saddled Team of Teams to a front-running score in the $100,000 Sand Springs Stakes, a one-mile turf test for older fillies and mares.

Team of Teams, an 11-1 longshot ridden by Hall of Famer John Velazquez, went right to the lead to set comfortable fractions of :24.31 seconds and :49.53 for the first half-mile before drawing away to a solid three-length victory.

Owned and bred by Joseph Allen, the 4-year-old daughter of Elusive Quality ran eight furlongs  in 1:35.94 to earn her first stakes victory.

"In her last start there was a lot of speed in the race and I tried to rate behind the speed," Velazquez said. "She's not a horse who likes to relax, but today there was no speed. We got to the lead and she was able to relax in front and was able to finish, which was the difference between her last two starts."

Grizzel closed to finish second, a half-length ahead of Island Reward, who was a neck ahead of 2-5 favorite and grade 1 winner Celestine, who lacked a late response after saving ground behind Team of Teams.

Team of Teams was bred in Kentucky out of the multiple graded stakes-winning A.P. Indy mare Teammate. She improved her overall record to three wins from 12 starts with $173,333 in earnings.