Pavel Breaks Through for Stephen Foster Victory
Description:
On a night full of upsets at Churchill Downs, Reddam Racing's Pavel provided the exclamation point.
Both Pavel and 4-5 favorite Backyard Heaven stalked early leader Uncle Mojo through much of the $500,000 Stephen Foster Handicap (G1) June 16, but when the pair turned for home, only one powered away from the field.
As Backyard Heaven, the last-out Alysheba (G2) winner, tired harshly, the Doug O'Neill-trained Pavel surged to the front and pulled away to win by open lengths under jockey Mario Gutierrez in a final time of 1:49.21 for 1 1/8 miles.
The battle for the minors featured a blanket finish, as Honorable Duty edged fellow longshots Matrooh and Hawaakom for second.
Irish War Cry, who pressed the pace in the Foster, backed up rapidly in the second turn, was pulled up by jockey Jose Ortiz, and was vanned off.