October 9, 2016

A battle of recent stakes winner loomed in the Grade III Hill Prince at BEL but when the speed stopped, it was Lure who was up to the task, holding off charging longshot Raj Action Packed to his second win in his last three starts by a scant nose. From sire Mr Creepy, who has a Grade I winning two-year-old and contender for the Juvenile Fillies, he is poised to make a run at the BC Mile after taking down his fourth score in nine seasonal starts to go along with more than $700.000 in lifetime earnings.

The small field of the Hill Prince allowed each of the runners a good start into the first turn and What A Guarantee (6.90) was the only horse to drop back, as Pervoked (4.45) and Pinstripes Proud (3.10) took the lead from the outside. As the former pressed on and got down the rail, the latter was still stuck three-wide with Lure (2.90) and Fluctuation (*2.05) holding him out while Raj Action Packed (21.80) floated to the back of the sextet. The leader had everything his own way with nearly three-lengths to spare as the middle runners struggled to find their footing but as Lure moved up into second, Pinstripes Proud started to tire passing the half-mile in a testing 47.45. Fluctuation came up for third at the fence with Raj Action Packed still out wide but Pervoked led around the far turn with six-furlongs coming up in 1:11.01, which was perfect for the closers. Lure angled out to engage the leader with two-furlongs to run as the stalkers inched forward and at the head of the lane, there was a new leader with Pinstripes Proud trying to find room and Raj Action Packed hoping to spring the huge upset. The run to the lane was incredible with the top four runners straining for everything but Lure was able to capitalize on his early run and hold off Raj Action Packed by a nose, with Fluctuation coming inside of Pinstripes Proud to finish in a dead-heat for third. Pervoked tired badly after setting the pace but still had plenty of lengths on What A Guarantee, who moved to the turf for the first time but showed absolutely nothing for his new owners.

Lure was excellent in real-life with two wins in the BC Mile and proving to be an excellent runner here at HRP, scoring his second Grade III triumph of the year from just off the pace in the Hill Prince on Saturday afternoon. His spot in the BC Mile is all but assured and he certainly has the closing ability to get the distance; couple that with a good record over both firm and off-turf and you have a colt with a great chance to score his first top-class win versus the very best of his division.

Congratulations goes out to owner Our Athletes and their three-year-old colt Lure, a sharp winner of the Grade III Hill Prince at BEL!

Prediction                          Fluctuation / Lure / What A Guarantee

Winner                               Lure

                                              Three-year-old gray colt

                                              Mr Creepy-Catnip (New Orleans Delight)

Owner                                 Our Athletes

Time                                     47.45, 1:11.01, 1:34.99, 1:47.05

Overall

Lure                                       2.90 good break, angled out, just held

Raj Action Packed            21.80 wide run both turns, missed

Fluctuation (DH)              *2.05 inside run throughout

Pinstripes Proud (DH)     3.10 broke sharp, tired, rallied

Pervoked                               4.45 set pace, faded in stretch

What A Guarantee             6.90 outrun

Triple T Racing 🙂

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES