San Marcos Stakes – Grade III
1 1/4 Mile Turf Graded Stake Purse $100.000 Four-Year-Olds And Upward. At SA

1st      Buffalo G               Nakamura Stables                     *3-1 (HRP) 9-5 (SRF)

Goes to show just how very hard a Grade I, $1,000.000 race like The Pegasus World Cup Turf can be when Buffalo G. runs eighth there and comes back here to score an open margin one-length win and likely receive a lower SRF for the effort, not to take anything away from the nine-year-old’s performance here as favorite over a talented field of experienced turf routers. This is win 21 for the old timer that boosted his earnings to nearly $2,000.000.

2nd      Port Gibson          The Sidley Stud                   8-1 (HRP) 3-1 (SRF)

Claimed for $4.000 two races ago, Port Gibson has now run two deep closing stakes races, this one a Graded stakes race, much to the delight of The Sidley Stud. Just as he did in the $100.000 Bradley Stakes, he waited until reaching the stretch until letting loose an explosive barrage of speed that took him to within a length of victory and established a pleasant pattern that, if followed, will result in a win next out.

3rd     Pure Winner             Marijane Racing Stab                 12-1 (HRP) 20-1 (SRF)

I missed Pure Winner completely. All I could see was claiming horse in stakes race and placed him at the bottom of my handicap at 20-1. HRP wasn’t much better placing him next to last, but at least he was only 12-1. I could see him over the years as a lot of things, a big-ticket maiden winner a starter allowance winner, I just couldn’t see third in a Graded III stakes race, but that was a nicely done deep close in a race where closing was the thing.

4th      Gold Vault                  The Sidley Stud               4-1 (HRP) *8-5 (SRF)

Gold Vault came here with all the right credentials, especially that sharp Grade II win in the Sycamore last out but just came up a little flat to close to only fourth.

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES