Horse Racing Roundup : Snow Chief Fades to Third as Skip Trial Wins Gulfstream ‘Cap

Skip Trial scored an impressive 4 1/2-length victory in the $250,000 Gulfstream Park Handicap Sunday at Hallandale, Fla., as heavily favored Snow Chief faded to third in the stretch.

The 5-year-old winner drew away with every stride in the final eighth of a mile to claim a rare repeat victory in this 1-mile stakes. Last year, Skip Trial won by a nose over Proud Truth.

Snow Chief, the leading money-winner among horses currently in training, was shipped in from California Thursday specifically to run in this race. He took the lead early but slowed badly in the stretch.

Skip Trial, ridden by Randy Romero, went the distance in 2:02 4/5 and paid $6.80 and $3.20. There was no show betting because only four horses started the race.

Creme Fraiche rallied to edge Snow Chief by a neck for second place and paid $3.40.

Snow Chief’s trainer, Mel Stute, had no excuse for his colt’s performance. “It looked like everything was perfect with those early fractions,” he said. “He looked fine until the last eighth. He didn’t have anything left. Maybe I didn’t train him hard enough. It didn’t work out like we planned.”

Show Chief made a similar trip to Gulfstream last year to win the Florida Derby, but he wasn’t strong enough to pull it off this time.

“He got tired at the end,” jockey Alex Solis said.

The 4-year-old favorite led Skip Trial by 1 1/2 lengths midway down the backstretch as the first half-mile was run in a relatively slow 49 seconds. But going to the far turn, Skip Trial started making up ground and got a head in front at the three-eighths pole.

Romero said: “The pace was slower than I expected. I was able to stay close without asking my horse to run. I swung out going to the (far) turn and got into my horse. He did the rest. He ran a super race.”

Skip Trial, who has won 14 of 32 races, was fourth in the Widener at Hialeah in his only other start this year.

That race came only two weeks after the horse stepped on a nail, an accident that caused trainer Sonny Hine to think about retiring Skip Trial.

“It was a puncture wound,” Hine said. “It was bleeding profusely, and I said right then he was retired.”

But Skip Trial recovered quickly.

Sunday’s first-place purse of $150,000 raised his career earnings total to $1,707,711.

It was Skip Trial’s first victory since an allowance race last October at the Meadowlands. His last stakes victory was in the Massachusetts Handicap at Suffolk Downs in June.

J.T.’s Pet improved his Kentucky Derby credentials by pulling away in the stretch for a 1 1/2-length victory in the $500,000 Jim Beam Stakes at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.

J.T.’s Pet, ridden by Pat Day, shadowed Faster Than Sound, under Craig Perret, until the field turned for home, then took control to run his unbeaten record to five races.

Faster Than Sound was clearly the best of the rest, finishing five lengths ahead of third-place Homebuilder.

J.T.’s Pet, winner of the Louisiana Derby in his last start, covered 1 1/16 miles in 1:42 4/5 while earning a purse of $300,000. The winning time in the sixth running of the race was 4/5 of a second off the stakes record turned in by Banner Bob in 1985.

The gelded son of Magesterial, sent off as a 6-5 favorite, paid $4.40, $3.40 and $2.80 and gave Day, trainer Lynn Whiting and owner William Partee their second Jim Beam victory. The trio combined to win the 1984 running with At The Threshold.

Faster Than Sound paid $5.80 and $5, and Homebuilder returned $4.80 to show.