Clear Choice’s Win in Withers Earns Colt Chance in Preakness

Clear Choice, ridden by Jorge Velasquez, raced on or near the lead to the stretch, opened a commanding advantage and went on to a 2 3/4-length victory in the $96,750 Withers Stakes for 3-year-olds at Aqueduct Wednesday.

Tasso, last year’s 2-year-old champion with Laffit Pincay aboard, finished second in the 10-horse field, 4 3/4 lengths ahead of Landing Plot, ridden by J.C. Estrada.

After the race, trainer Wayne Lukas said Clear Choice, who skipped the Kentucky Derby, will be shipped to Baltimore for the May 17 Preakness, the second leg of the Triple Crown. Lukas plans to run Clear Choice as an entry with Badger Land, who ran fifth in last Saturday’s Derby.

“We plan to bring him to the Preakness now,” Lukas said of Clear Choice. “We always felt we had a quality horse who could race with the top 3-year-olds. It was just a matter of bringing him along slowly. As the year progresses, we believe he’ll be one of the top 3-year-olds.”

Neil Drysdale, who trains Tasso, said of the Preakness, “We’ll have to assess the situation and see how he comes out of the race before a decision is made.”

Tasso finished fourth in his previous start, the Wood Memorial April 19 at Aqueduct, but was forced to bypass the Derby because of minor leg lacerations.

Owned by Eugene V. Klein, Clear Choice, carrying 126 pounds, ran the mile in 1:35 3/5 to record his second victory in six starts this year.

The winner paid $17.40, $4.40 and $3.20. Tasso returned $2.40 and $2.20, while Landing Plot paid $3.40 to show.