The Rebel (Grade 2)- $1,000.000 Purse
OP- For Three Year Olds
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
March 13, 2021
The Rebel was the final 50 point race of the season, and out of the six of them that were run, Mb Stables came away with four wins. Two of them were in the same race, but certainly an impressive clip. In the Rebel, Smokin Luka would earn the distinction of being that fourth winner, giving him four of the top five on the leaderboard. Due to the unfortunate game restriction which penalizes the best horses from running in the KYD based on the trainer that owns them, only three of them will be able to run in the KYD. Mb Stables has more options capable of getting into the top 20, as well, so he has enjoyed yet another great campaign. For Mb Stables, this was his fourth win in the Rebel, having also won with Commanding (2013), Fearful (2016), and Fear The Dragion (2019). D Davis is your winning rider, and it is his first in the race. Congratulations to them! The time of the victory was 1:41.61, the fourth quickest in the history of the race. Let’s take a look!
(¼ Mile- :24.12)- This large field of fourteen breaks into three, evenly spaced and symmetrical groups of four to begin the race, with two more who seemed to struggle mightily out of the gate behind them. Test The Party Code, from Mb Stables, is the early leader of group one, with Extremo (Acber Stables) running second two over from the rail and Booster (Estero Farms) between them. On the rail, and starting to lose some ground to the three after a quarter mile, is Just Wanna Blaze (Gdp Inc). The second group of four includes our eventual winner, Smokin Luka, from Mb Stables, and he runs in the second lane. On his outside, it’s War Chant (Aer Stables) and Freakin Out (Delta Farms). The third group of four consists of Afterburner (Arindel), Kinch (Whitewater Stables), Burning Red Hooves (TwinTowersRacing), and Toothpaste (Night Rider Stables). Missing out on running in one of these groups are the two who broke poorly, Breath Of The Wild (Smokey Stover), and Angelino (Nakamura Stables).
(½ Mile- :47.76)- Test The Party Code leads the way during the backstretch trip, and even though he had the rest of the field cleared, he chose to remain in the fourth lane entering the turn, instead of maybe just a little more effort to get over to the rail. Booster and Extremo were heads apart for second while Just Wanna Blaze held this ground on the rail. It is now five wide behind then, as Afterburner moves up to join that initial second group of four. They are about two lengths off the lead, and Smokin Luka is slightly in front of the others in this pack. Everyone else was another two lengths back, or more.
(Top Of Stretch, 2F To Go)- For the moment, Test The Party Code still leads, but he was about to lose that spot as several looked to position themselves for their runs. Booster had caught up to him, and was going to be the first to make the pass of the pacesetter, and Just Wanna Blaze was gaining some ground on the rail. Those behind them fanned out quite a bit on exit of the turn, and Smokin Luka was able to hold his lane enough and then prepare to pass his stablemate early in the stretch. War Chant, who had been running side by side with him, lost a valuable length to Smokin Luka here, but was also looking to move forward. Behind them, you had the feeling that it would be difficult for anyone else to make a run for the win.
(Finish- 1:41.61)- Things went according to plan for Smokin Luka, who did not have any trouble passing Test The Party Code. I was a little surprised that neither Booster nor Just Wanna Blaze put up a good fight against him, so that should be a testament to Smokin Luka’s performance. Booster takes a share of second, a length behind the winner, sharing the position with War Chant, because it couldn’t be a 50-point race without a dead heat somewhere in the four. Just Wanna Blaze was part of that photo, but gets fourth. Test The Party Code was good enough to remain fifth, and behind them, no one else was a contender. Rounding out the order, it’s Gilgo Beach, Afterburner, Freakin Out, Kinch, Extremo, Breath Of The Wild, Toothpaste, Burning Red Hooves, and Angelino.
About The Winner- Smokin Luka, trained by Mb Stables and ridden to victory by D Davis, is a three year old by Copper Bottom, and is out of Knockdown. He was bred in New York as a yearling by Night Rider Stables, and acquired by Mb Stables for $475.000 in a September 2020 private sale. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his fourth in ten starts, and his second graded win. His career earnings are now $1,341.200.
Track: Fast
Time: :24 :473 1:111 1:413
$2 Mutuel Prices:
$1 Exacta: 10 – 7 Paid 98.30, 10 – 12 Paid 74.00
$1 Trifecta: 10 – 7 – 12 Paid 364.70, 10 – 12 – 7 Paid 728.40
Scratched: Z Fiddler, Stress Free
— NS
Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES
