Inside the Trip: El Kabeir’s Jerome win

El Kabeir lived up to his maiden performance when winning Saturday's Jerome Stakes. (Photos by Eclipse Sportswire)
El Kabeir made his first start as a sophomore a winning one when landing last Saturday’s Jerome Stakes at Aqueduct. It was the way he did it which was most impressive.
The son of Scat Daddy was wide throughout, traveling the second-widest trip in the field, and the widest of the first six finishers. At the end, he was a winner by nearly five lengths, but probably would have deserved even more had he been deigned the ability to save some ground. El Kabeir covered 18 feet more than second home Nasa, 25 feet more than third-placer General Bellamy, 47 and 58 feet more than Ackeret and Ostrolenka, home a distant fourth and fifth, respectively. Make no mistake that these laggards, some of whom enjoyed inside trips, were well-beaten as it was, but El Kabeir’s performance in spite of that trip, combined with how the track was playing at Aqueduct, made it all the more impressive.
2014 JEROME STAKES

Of the nine races on the inner dirt, six were won by horses that covered one of the three shortest trips in their respective fields, four of which were the shortest trip. A low-level claiming affair at six furlongs, the third race was won by 42.75-to-1 shot In the Beat who covered the fifth-widest trip in a six-horse field, the only other winner on the day to really cover extra territory in Queens.
This blog discussed El Kabeir after his maiden win, asking for some pause given the swift raw time he recorded at Saratoga. Speaking of time, it will surely tell us what El Kabeir beat in the Jerome. Given the tendencies of the day at Aqueduct, this looked like a very solid win helping to add some heat towards the Kentucky Derby Trail.
Around the Nation
A pair of 7 ½-furlong turf stakes for three-year-olds juiced the Saturday action at Gulfstream with varying results. Devine Aida broke from gate nine, second-widest in the Ginger Brew Stakes, and traveled no less than at least two wide throughout and drew away to the 3 ½-length score. Second home Nicky’s Brown Miss covered 31 feet less, while third placer Sunday Sonnet went 34 feet less.
Two races earlier, Night Prowler also broke from gate nine but got to the rail with ease from a trailing position and saved valuable early ground. The son of Giant’s Causeway progressed well through the pack and got up to win by a half-length. Second place A Lot covered 20 feet more while third Croninthebarbarian covered 45 feet more, a distance equating to an extra 5 ¼ lengths.
NIGHT PROWLER WINNING THE DANIA BEACH STAKES

Finnegans Wake covered the second-widest trip in the San Gabriel Stakes at Santa Anita, a tactic that may have helped the Peter Miller trainee who has been racing over longer trips most recently. He powered home with the quickest closing sectionals as well.
On Sunday at the “Great Race Place,” Shrinking Violet managed a sensational ground-saving trip down the hill from Kent Desormeaux to upset the Monrovia Stakes at 10-1. She covered the shortest trip in the field, with second-placer Heat Trap going 20 feet more, fourth home Sky Treasure covering an extra 27 feet and seventh Biorhythm going 30 feet farther. All three actually averaged a higher speed throughout the race than Shrinking Violet.
Mackenzie Kirker-Head contributed to this report