Pick of the Litter Shows Best in Fayette Win
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Pick of the Litter benefited from a ground-saving trip under Corey Lanerie to get up in the last strides over favored Departing in the $200,000 Hagyard Fayette Stakes (gr. II), earning his first graded win Oct. 25 at Keeneland .
In the final stakes event of the brief Keeneland fall stand that ended Saturday, 7-1 shot Pick of the Litter prevailed by a neck for Carolyn Vogel's Crossed Sabres Farm and trainer Dale Romans. The final time for the 1 1/8-mile test over a fast main track was 1:49.48.
Gabriel Duignan, Crosshaven Bloodstock, and Vision Thoroughbreds bred the 4-year-old son of Kitten's Joy out of the winning Fusaichi Pegasus mare Eagle Sound. Vogel paid $150,000 for the statuesque chestnut colt out of the Paramount Sales, agent, consignment at the 2011 Keeneland September yearling sale.
Breaking from the rail, Pick of the Litter dropped to fifth along the inside in the field of eight, from where he was able to stalk a ding-dong pace duel between 2-1 choice Departing along the inside, Call Me George, and Long River. Call Me George and Long River took turns leading through quarter-mile splits of :24.39, :48.23, and 1:12.29, with Departing also right there, and they continued to show the way into the stretch.
Asked for more by Lanerie at the quarter pole, Pick of the Litter gradually reached contention while angling slightly off the rail past the furlong mark. He proved best under encouragement, edging ahead of Departing, who had opened a clear advantage near mid-stretch, just before the line.
Lanerie said he had a perfect trip in earning his first win in the Fayette.
"My plan was to try to get behind Departing; I thought he was the horse to beat and to (I tried) not to let him get out of my sights," Lanerie said. "I wanted to stay kinda' close to him and see what I had turning for home, see if I had enough to go by him or not.
"This horse has always shown in the past that he had the potential to be a really good horse. For some reason, it wouldn't just all click at one time. Dale (Romans) and I kept talking, 'We know he's a good horse.' We didn't know why he's just not getting there, but we knew he could do it. Today he put it all together."
Long River, who like Departing went off at 2-1 odds, yielded late and wound up third, beaten by 1 1/4 lengths with Rosie Napravnik aboard. Rallying Code West was beaten a neck for the show spot, with Call Me George, Coltimus Prime, and Stephanoatsee completing the order.
Pick of the Litter was most recently fourth in the Homecoming Classic at Churchill Downs Sept. 27, 2 1/2 lengths behind the victorious Cigar Street. He won an allowance/optional claiming race over a muddy track at Saratoga Race Course a month earlier following a fourth in the Monmouth Cup (gr. II) July 27. His best prior stakes effort came in last year's Coolmore Lexington Stakes (gr. III) when he was third over Keeneland's former Polytrack.
Romans, who is in Southern California preparing for the 2014 Breeders' Cup, won his first Fayette Stakes since M B Sea in 2003.
The winner carrier 121 pounds and paid $16.60, $7, and $4.20, while keying a $57.80 exacta. Departing, who ran second in the Homecoming Classic last time, returned $3.40 and $2.60 with Robby Albarado aboard. Long River, third last time after setting the pace in the Jockey Club Gold Cup (gr. I), paid $3 to show.
Pick of the Litter is the second winner from three starters produced by his dam, Eagle Sound. Her unraced 2-year-old by Scat Daddy named Stevie's Wonder sold for $180,000 in March at the Fasig-Tipton Florida sale, and a yearling by Uncle Mo brought $390,000 from Shortleaf Stable from the Paramount Sales consignment at the recent Keenland September sale.
Napravnik enjoyed 16 wins to secure her second consecutive fall meet riding title.
Todd Pletcher and Graham Motion shared the title for leading trainer with eight victories each. It was the third leading trainer title for Pletcher, who topped the standings in the 2005 and 2008 spring meets, and the first for Motion.
Ken and Sarah Ramsey sent out nine winners to claim their fifth outright fall leading owner title. The Ramseys, who set a Keeneland record with 17 winners last fall, have won 14 leading owner titles at Keeneland, nine of them outright. The 14 titles tie the Ramseys with T. Allie Grissom for the most meet crowns.