Kentucky Cup 2001

Dateline: 9/22/01

The Kentucky Cup is Turfway Park's big day of Breeders' Cup prep races with graded stakes for the older horses, the sprinters, and the distaffers on the card along with ungraded stakes for the 2-year-old colts and fillies.

Kentucky Cup Classic

Guided Tour and Balto Star in a close finish for the Kentucky Cup Classic

Guided Tour pressed the pace of favorite Balto Star all the way and finally wore his rival down in the final strides to win by a neck. A Fleet's Dancer was 8 1/4 lengths further back in third. The victory was his third straight graded stakes win and his fourth in seven starts this year. The five-year-old gelding now has a career record of 12 wins in 29 starts with 8 seconds and 1 third with total earnings of $1,884,253.

Pgm  Horse              Jockey            Win   Place   Show
 3   Guided Tour        Melancon         5.00    2.60   2.20
 2   Balto Star         Day                      2.60   2.20
 5   A Fleets Dancer    Landry                          3.20

Winning Time:  1:47.90

$2 Exacta 3-2               10.00
$2 Trifecta  3-2-5          50.60
$2 Superfecta 3-2-5-1      190.80

Results Chart from Equibase

Guided Tour in the winner's circle. Jockey Larry Melancon said: "He has stalker's speed, and I know Balto Star goes off on the lead by himself. I just wanted not to let that horse get away."

Guided Tour in the paddock prior to the race. He went to post a narrow second favorite at 1.50-1.

1.20-1 favorite Balto Star in the paddock. He went the first 6 furlongs in 1:10.65 and was unable to hold his rival off in deep stretch. Jockey Pat Day said: "The winner stalked me and pushed me throughout, and he finally wore me down at the finish. You'll get no complaints here. Balto Star ran very hard and tried very hard. That was a very good horse that beat me."

Kentucky Cup Sprint

Snow Ridge edges out City Zip in the Kentucky Cup Sprint

Snow Ridge went right to the front and set all the early fractions before being headed in the stretch by heavy favorite City Zip. However, Snow Ridge found a new gear and came back to win by a neck in 1:09.22. It was the first stakes victory for the son of Tabasco Cat who was sent off as the fourth favorite in the field of five at odds of 4.10-1. City Zip, who went off at 0.60-1, was 5 1/4 lengths in front of third place finisher Dream Run. D. Wayne Lukas, trainer of Snow Ridge, said: "I thought all along he would merit a start in the Breeders' Cup, and we may give him that chance. He beat a very, very good horse in City Zip."

Pgm  Horse              Jockey            Win   Place   Show
 4   Snow Ridge         Day             10.20    3.00   2.10
 6   City Zip           Ferrer                   2.40   2.10
 2   Dream Run          Desormeaux                      2.10

Winning Time:  1:09.22

$2 Exacta 4-6               20.60
$2 Trifecta  4-6-2          43.40

Results Chart from Equibase

Turfway Breeders' Cup Stakes

Trip all alone at the finish of the Turfway Breeders' Cup Stakes

Favorite Spain, sent off at odds of 1.30-1, disappointed her backers with a dull third place finish, beaten nearly 4 lengths. 7-1 fourth choice Trip ran a perfect stalking race before taking over in the stretch and drawing off to win by 3 lengths. 45.50-1 longshot Precious Feather rallied from 6th place to take second, yielding some large mutuel payoffs. Trip has now won four out of seven starts this year to bring her total earnings to $670,598.

Pgm  Horse              Jockey            Win   Place   Show
 4   Trip               Perret          16.00    9.80   5.00
 3   Precious Feather   Meche                   27.80   6.20
 7   Spain              Espinoza                        2.60

Winning Time:  1:09.22

$2 Exacta 4-3              492.00
$2 Trifecta  4-3-7       1,484.20
$2 Superfecta 4-3-7-5   11,319.80

Results Chart from Equibase

Spain, with Victor Espinoza up, finishing third as the favorite. She may still go back to the Breeders' Cup to defend her title in the Distaff according to her trainer D. Wayne Lukas.

Photos ©2001 Tom Sporney, licensed to About.

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