December 8, 2015

Owner Hambletonian Stable was supposed to have two entrants in the CC Jewel but in the end, one turned out to be enough as Homeoffarleysdevil sprinted clear of the field early and held on late to record his seventh win of the season. A son of Home Of The Divine, who produced Divine And Broke to win the BC Juvenile, he had been racing on the grass for much of the year and used the turf-to-dirt angle to score his second stakes win of the year, one year removed from finishing third in this same race at odds of 62-1.

Rocket Man (3.25) used his inside speed to gain the early lead in the CC Jewel with Homeoffarleysdevil (7.95) quick as well from the outside and with such a short run into the first turn, positions were key for those looking to press forward. Dawn Ride (17.50) also broke well but was caught wide into the first turn as the leader inched down to the rail but by the time the group of six reached the backstretch, Homeoffarleysdevil was off and running in a race of his own. Almost five-lengths in front through a tepid half-mile of 48.92, the wall of three well back of him was making no early progress with Rajivs Roadblock (3.90) stuck behind them. As the field marched to six-furlongs in 1:12.46, only Royal Observatory (3.45) was making any gains forward with Dawn Ride wide and Rocket Man still hugging the fence, all in back of a loose Homeoffarleysdevil. However, with a furlong to go, the lead was down to three-lengths and diminishing and with each step, the entire field seemed to close in; as everyone staggered home, the question was one of stamina over talent. At the wire, five-lengths was enough for Homeoffarleysdevil to hold on with the margin a scant nose from Royal Observatory in second and Dawn Ride wide in third. Rocket Man failed to quicken late in fourth, Ravijs Roadblock never got involved and Special Component (*1.80) raced in last throughout after failing to handle the very modest fractions.

Homeoffarleysdevil carried the most weight in the CC Jewel and used surprisingly good gate speed to upset the field for only his second main track win, even with a very slow final time and a low speed rating for the class as well. Consistent and all season long despite 16 starts, this puts the cherry on the top of a good season with much more expected at this level when he returns at five.

Congratulations goes out to owner Hambletonian Stable and their four-year-old colt Homeoffarleysdevil, a wire-to-wire winner of the CC Jewel at GP!

Prediction                       Royal Observatory / Rocket Man / Special Component

Winner                            Homeoffarleysdevil

                                           Four-year-old bay colt

                                           Home Of The Divine-Farleys Angel (Charley Farley)

Owner                              Hambletonian Stable

Time                                 48.92, 1:12.46, 1:36.53, 1:49.01

Overall

Homeoffarleysdevil       7.95 blazing speed, clear into lane, lasted

Royal Observatory         3.45 between runners, best of the rest

Dawn Ride                       17.50 wide trip throughout

Rocket Man                      3.25 inside run, no late gains

Rajivs Roadblock           3.90 behind rivals, no momentum in drive

Special Component       *1.80 last throughout

Triple T Racing 🙂

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded