Ghostzapper Prevails Easily

Spotting his five rivals months as well as pounds, Ghostzapper still romped to an easy win Monday in the $750,000 Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park in New York, showing that he’s well-prepared for a second horse-of-the-year campaign.

Making his first start in seven months, or since he won the Breeders’ Cup Classic in Texas to clinch the national title, and carrying high weight of 124 pounds, Ghostzapper and jockey Javier Castellano split horses leaving the backstretch and coasted home by 6 1/4 lengths in a time of 1:33 1/5 for the mile. Ghostzapper has won six in a row, nine of 11 overall.

Ghostzapper, bred and owned by Frank Stronach and trained by Bobby Frankel, missed a start this year because of a sinus condition. He has won at six distances -- 6, 6 1/2 and 7 furlongs; a mile; and 1 1/8 and 1 1/4 miles.

Frankel has four more New York races in mind for Ghostzapper -- the Suburban, the Woodward and the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Belmont and the Whitney at Saratoga.

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Hollywood Park-based Jon Court traveled to Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, and rode three stakes winners -- Supah Blitz in the $300,000 Lone Star Park Handicap, Mad Adam in the $200,000 Pin Oak Stud USA and R Fast Lady in the $145,500 Stonerside. Court also finished second in the $200,000 WinStar Distaff Handicap with Valentine Dancer, who finished 1 1/2 lengths behind Katdogawn.

Supah Blitz, trained by Doug O’Neill, was a 5-2 shot who had finished second twice in the Texas Mile at Lone Star. Lion Tamer, the even-money favorite, was fourth, beaten by three noses, in the 1 1/16 -mile race.

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In other stakes, favored Silverfoot repeated as the winner of the $100,000 Louisville Handicap at Churchill Downs, and Conveyor’s Angel traveled to Albany to take the $100,000 Golden Poppy at Golden Gate Fields.