Marlboro Cup : Stevens, Turkoman Time Late Run to Precision

Turkoman, with Gary Stevens aboard, blew past favored Precisionist in the stretch Saturday to win the $500,000 Marlboro Cup at Belmont Park by 1 1/2 lengths.

“I collared him at the quarter pole and I figured Precisionist would have to run the race of his life to beat him,” said Stevens, who was riding Turkoman for the first time because the colt’s regular rider, Chris McCarron, is injured.

Precisionist had enough to finish second, 8 3/4 lengths ahead of Roo Art in the five-horse field. Mogambo was another half-length back, with Ends Well last.

Turkoman, who carried 123 pounds, four less than Precisionist, ran the 1 miles in 2:00. This equaled the stakes record for the distance set by Wajima under 119 pounds in 1975 and equaled by Forego under 137 pounds in 1976.

Saron Stable’s Turkoman returned $4.80, $2.80 and $2.10 in earning $300,000 for his fourth victory in six starts this year. The 4-year-old colt was sidelined from May 26 to Aug. 17 because of a blood disorder.

Fred W. Hooper’s Precisionist, ridden by Jorge Velasquez, returned $2.80 and $2.10. Barbara A. Holleran’s Roo Art, ridden by Bill Shoemaker, paid $2.20 to show.

Turkoman was last for the first three-quarters of a mile as Precisionist set the pace.

“It was a slow pace, and he was real comfortable,” said Stevens, who started to move his mount before the final turn “because I didn’t want Precisionist to run away from him.”

Velasquez put Precisionist on top at the break and he led through the first mile, with margins ranging from 1 1/2 to 3 1/2 lengths.

As the field approached the half-mile pole, Stevens started to move Turkoman, and on the turn, he began to go around, three horses wide.

With a quarter-mile left, Precisionist held a 3 1/2-length margin over Roo Art, with Turkoman a head farther back.

Then Turkoman soared past Precisionist at the eighth pole, and it was all over.

The victory was Turkoman’s eighth in 20 starts and boosted his career earnings to $1,284,814.

The 14th running of the Marlboro was one of three Grade I stakes on the Belmont card, run before a crowd of 29,183 on a sunny afternoon.

In the preceding race, Gulch, an unbeaten 2-year-old ridden by Angel Cordero, won his fourth straight stakes and his fifth race with a 1-length victory over Demon’s Begone in the $153,000 Futurity at seven furlongs.

In the $127,200 Flower Bowl Handicap for fillies and mares over 1 miles on the grass, Scoot, ridden by Shoemaker, and Dismasted, with Jean-Luc Samyn aboard, finished in a dead-heat for first.