TAMPA, Florida, CMC – Skippylongstocking justified his label as a favorite by brushing aside the field to capture the US$100 000 Grade 3 Michelob Ultra Challenger Stakes for Barbadian trainer Saffie Joseph Jr at Tampa Bay Downs here Saturday.
Under the experienced handling of Irad Ortiz Jr, the four-year-old colt stalked the pace set by 6-1 chance Trademark, dueled with the leader around the far turn before kicking clear in the stretch to reach the wire 3-¼ lengths clear in a time of one minute, 42.52 seconds.
Five-to-one chance Tax ran second while 26-1 bet Surly Furious – the longest shot in the race – produced a superb effort to finish just a head behind in third.
“He looked pretty good the whole race, and then at the top of the lane, the five (Surly Furious) shot through, and it scared me,” said Joseph.
“I was worried [Skippylongstocking] wouldn’t kick in, but Irad knew what he had and gave him a perfect trip.
“This is a consistent, hard-trying horse. He’s probably not a good Grade 1 horse, but he’s an excellent Grade 3, Grade 2 horse, and maybe one day he might get the Grade 1 win he deserves.
“We threw a pretty hard campaign at him last year, and he bounced back from it and is still in good form.”
Going a mile and sixteenth, Skippylongstocking survived a bump at the start to press the pace, with 20-1 choice Mighty Heart, Tax, and Surly Furious all tracking well in a tightly bunched seven-horse field.
Trademark faded at the top of the lane, but when Skippylongstocking hit the front, Surly Furious challenged along the rails to briefly pick up the running.
However, Ortiz rallied the Daniel Alonso-owned colt, and he responded by re-taking the lead and storming to the finish.
The victory was important for Skippylongstocking especially following his disappointment in January’s Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park when he ran seventh.
Skippylongstocking last tasted success when he captured the Grade 3 Harlan’s Holiday last December, also at Gulfstream.
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