CC Rapid Transit ($125.000 Purse)
CD- For Three Year Olds and Upward
Seven Furlongs on the Dirt
November 16, 2024

It was a tight finish at the wire in the CC Rapid Transit between three horses, and a couple of longshots would take the top two spots. Blue Blood went off at odds of 26/1, but with some significant add changes, he was able to overcome his flat effort last time out and prevail at the wire and to light up the board. 15/1 longshot Uncle Bo took the second spot, to create a $1 exacta of $460.60. Blue Blood is trained by The Sidley Stud and was ridden by R Santana Jr. For each, it is their first win in the CC Rapid Transit, so congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:21.47, which can really only be compared to the 2022 edition, and was .02 off that pace. Let’s take a look at how the race was run:

(1/4 Mile- :22.48)- Sweaty Raj isn’t messing around at the start of the race and pulls nearly two lengths in front of the rest of the field for Spb Racing. Behind him, are a couple of others that started from the outside with Asgar’s Baw From The Boot leading Mb Stables’ Bunter Hiden by a neck. Within a length of these two on the inside is where we find our eventual winner from The Sidley Stud, Blue Blood. Running four wide here is Hickory Smooth for Mb Stables, and Uncle Bo is right behind Baw From The Boot for Night Rider Stables. Running in the middle of the back are Only Way Is Up (The Sidley Stud) and Send The Check (Alydar Stables), and then comes Game On Dude (Invicta Group Llc) and Ai Prince (D J C Racing Stables). Dunkin Run (Angelos Stable) is a length behind them, and Lake Ruataniwa (The Freakshow) is to his outside. At the back are Nardwuar (Asgar) and Public Sector (D J C Racing Stables).

(½ Mile- :45.76, Top of Stretch, 1.8F To Go)- Sweaty Raj would comfortably lead the field down the backstretch and into the turn with not a lot of movement happening throughout the field at that point. Blue Blood was fourth moving into the turn but still positioned well on the rail. Once into the stretch, Sweaty Raj had to know that he was in trouble as mostly everyone was closing in on him. Bunter Hiden and Hickory Smooth were second and third for the moment, but the great trip of Blue Blood continued as he stayed glued to the rail. Uncle Bo was right behind Bunter Hiden and possibly had room to move to the inside of that one as Baw From The Boot was still in the lane to his outside. Only Way Is Up and Game On Dude still had a good shot as well. The rest of the field had their work cut out for them.

(Finish- 1:21.47)- With a furlong to go, Blue Blood would take over the lead and would hope to take it all the way to the wire. At this point, Uncle Bo was about a length and a half behind him but finally had some room to run in front of him. It was only in the closing moments of the race did it look like Blue Blood may not have had in the bag after all, as Uncle Bo was determined, and Hickory Smooth was inching a little closer on the outside. In an exciting run to the wire, Blue Blood would get the head bob on Uncle Bo at the wire, and Hickory Smooth was only beaten by a head as well. A late outside run by the post time favorite, Lake Ruataniwa, got him got him fourth, with Only Way Is Up, Game On Dude, and Dunkin Run all close by. The second half of the running order will read Bunter Hiden, Sweaty Raj, Send The Check, Nardwuar, Ai Prince, Baw From The Boot, and Public Sector.

About The Winner- Blue Blood, trained by The Sidley Stud and ridden by R Santana Jr, is a four-year-old gelding by Artisocrat, and is out of the late Hello Helen. He was bred in New York by Mb Stables as a third quarter two-year-old, and was acquired by The Sidley Stud, via Asgar, with a $14.000 claim this May. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his second in 15 starts, and first stake win. His career earnings are now $151.780.

Track: Fast
Time: :22²  :45³  1:09³  1:21²

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 5 – 6 Paid 460.60
$1 Trifecta: 5 – 6 – 14 Paid 1,192.70

Scratched: Three Year Delta

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded