Notorious Temper Makes Night Rider Happy in Lecomte Stakes

By Nynl Stables on January 19, 2020

Lecomte Stakes (Grade 3) (KYD)- $200.000 Purse
FG- For Three Year Olds
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
January 18, 2020

On Saturday, many tracks experienced precipitation of some sort, and FG was no exception. We would run the Lecomte Stakes in the mud, and that would certainly make some trainers happy and others not so much. For Night Rider Stables, the rain was welcomed, at least for this race. Notorious Temper in his young career has had plenty of experience on off tracks, with two wins in three races on them. Now, we can add another one as the one time $12.000 auction purchase comes through again in the rain, getting the first win in the stake for both Night Rider Stables and jockey T Gaffalione. Congratulations to them! The race was run in a time of 1:45.53. Here’s a look at it!

(1/4 Mile- :24.02)- The race sees the two horses on the outside get pushed out the early in a fashion that we have become accustomed to seeing. Class Edge, from Chili King Stables, and the also eligible, The Mist, from Rampage Stables share the early lead with Allinthegate’s Raid Of The Mist running in the third position, two lengths back. Moving up to his outside into fourth would be our eventual winner, Notorious Temper, from Night Rider Stables, giving him a good track position in the third lane. Just behind them were the three from the inner three posts running together: Chai Morning (Aer Stables), Spirited Stride (Mb Stables), and Aggravated Sky (Estero Farms). Behind the pack somewhat were Supreme Confidence (Mb Stables), and Peachtree (Smokey Stover), and they had Neighborhood Hero (D J C Racing Stables) nearby. Trailing were Anoush Command (Serenity Stables) and Bound Bay (Gdp Inc).

(½ Mile- :48.39)- Over the course of the backstretch, The Mist pulls ahead of Class Edge by about a length. The other mist, Raid Of The Mist, backed off considerably and now found himself in the middle of the field. As this was going on, Notorious Temper was gradually getting closer to the front, having no one to contend with for third any more, he was within a length of Class Edge now and preparing to complete the pass in the turn. Chai Morning would also make a slight move forward, showing the intention at this point to make a move on the rail. Both Aggravated Sky and Spirited Stride maintained their position, with Raid Of The Mist backing into them. Nothing new to report further back in the field.

(Top Of The Stretch, 2F To Go)- Rounding the turn, and entering the stretch, Notorious Temper continued to push forward, and was now in a three wide position to take over the race lead. It turned out that the big longshot, Class Edge, would be a difficult one to pass as both of them reeled in the The Mist. Chai Morning was also looking very good at this point, handling the turn well and now within a length and a half. With the S X Bridgmohan aboard, there was no doubting him being a threat in this race. Aggravated Sky was looking a lot more interested now, and loomed as a contender. Further back, still not much going on, with Anoush Command and Bound Bay running side by side but yet to make much progress.

(Finish- 1:45.53)- Notorious Temper continued to run well in the stretch, and both he and Class Edge were too much for The Mist, and that one would back out early. Now it would be up to T Gaffalione to make sure that his horse could hold off Class Edge, and midway through the stretch, he would do so. However, a new threat emerged in the form of Anoush Command. Not too long after entering the stretch, he would make a powerful move around Raid Of The Mist into one of the outer lanes, with a push that may have stunned other rivals caught in the tail wind. As the post-time favorite, many in the stands cheered on this push, and he would get everyone except Notorious Temper. Fortunately for the winner, the likes of Class Edge made him never back off, and that kept the distance be too much for Anoush Command to overcome, and the win goes to Notorious Temper. Anoush Command is second, with Class Edge only about a length back in third. Bound Bay slipped through the field to get fourth, and Chai Morning never advanced further then fifth. Aggravated Sky is sixth, ahead of The Mist. Rounding it out and never being a factor in the race were Spirited Stride, Neighborhood Hero, Raid Of The Mist, Supreme Confidence, and Peachtree.

About The Winner- Notorious Temper, trained by Night Rider Stables, and ridden to victory by T Gaffalione, is a three year old gelding by Notorious One, and is out of Golden Return. He was bred in Florida by TwinTowersRacing as a first quarter two year old, and acquired by Night Rider, via Mb Stables, in the June 2019 auction for just $12.000. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his fourth in six starts, his third stake win, and first graded win. His career earnings are now $473.500.

Horse Name

Owner Name

Jockey

Odds

Fin

Time

SRF

Notorious Temper

Night Rider Stables

Gaffalione T

8.60

1^1/2