Read Stakes (Grade 2)- $250.000 Purse
DMR- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Eighth on the Turf
July 28, 2024

Typically, King Z has had a running style of being at or near the lead early at the start of the race, but on Sunday in the Read Stakes, that was not the plan. The post time favorite would begin the race near the back of the field this time but would get the job done in the stretch to win the race by a length. The gelding is trained by Mb Stables, and it is his third win in the Read Stakes. Along for the ride was J C Ferrer, earning their first Read trophy. Congratulations to them! The race was won in a time of 1:44.84, the second quickest in the race’s history. Only Snippets in 2009 was quicker. Let’s take a look at it now:

(½ Mile- :47.14)- Buffalo G will be the leader out of the gate for Nakamura Stables, and he will hold the lead as the run around the first turn begins. However, Mb Stables- trained Love Of The Derby would treat the turn as if it were the closing strides of the race and aggressively pushed forward to be the one that officially leads after a mile. Running third is Invicta Group Llc’s Eagle Mountain, who is a length and a half off the lead. It’s another length to fourth place Atomic Eclipse, from Spankys Barn, and he has Lanfranco Stable’s Wicked Good nearby to his inside. Jerry West is next, running four wide for La Canada Racehorses, and in between these two are Alydar Stables’ Details Matter, as well as our eventual winner from Mb Stables, King Z. Longshot Cp Sad Pain, from Barcelona Farms, is at the back by his lonesome.

(3/4 Mile- 1:10.52)- Love Of The Derby settles in while running down the backstretch, and Buffalo G runs within a length to his inside. Eagle Mountain is third, a length behind the leader still, and Atomic Eclipse leads the rest of the pack. He’s in the middle of a group of four, which sees King Z move up into the fifth position. Jerry West and Wicked Good are right there with them, but Details Matter has dropped back. Cp Sad Pain is struggling at the back.

(Top Of Stretch, 1.5F To Go)- Things tighten up quicker than expected midway into the turn, as Love Of The Derby is unable to maintain his same pace. Buffalo G goes by to his inside, and on the outside, Eagle Mountain also makes his move. It will be Eagle Mountain that is the leader entering the stretch, but those that were right behind the initial lead group have also closed in. Doing so quickly was King Z, handling the turn very well as he looked to take the baton from stablemate Love Of The Derby and take it from here. While in the fourth lane, he was now within a length of the leaders. However, he would still have work to do, because Atomic Eclipse and Jerry West were also gaining ground and looked like contenders. Wicked Good was running evenly, and we can forget about Details Matter and Cp Sad Pain at this point.

(Finish- 1:44.84)- With a little less than a furlong to go, King Z takes the top spot from Eagle Mountain and while Jerry West and Atomic Eclipse were running well, they did not seem to be gaining on King Z. There would be no stopping King Z on this day, as he runs well all the way to the wire to secure the win! Atomic Eclipse edges out Jerry West in a photo for place, and Eagle Mountain gets the fourth-place check. Rounding it out, it’s Buffalo G, Love Of The Derby, Wicked Good, Details Matter, and Cp Sad Pain.

About The Winner- King Z, trained by Mb Stables and ridden to victory by J C Ferrer, is a five-year-old gelding by Z Grayte One and is out of Ete Queen. He was bred in New York by Gdp Inc as a yearling, and was acquired by Mb Stables, via Spb Racing, with a $16.000 claim in November 2023. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his sixth in 23 starts and his second stake win, each of which are graded. His career earnings are now $458.940.

Track: Firm
Time: :47  1:10²  1:33³  1:44⁴

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 6 – 3 Paid 12.10
$1 Trifecta: 6 – 3 – 9 Paid 222.20

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES