Bradley Stakes ($100.000 Purse)
FG- For Four Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Turf
January 20, 2024

Pxg had the strongest resume out of any of the horses competing in the Bradley Stakes, but that does not necessarily mean that is how a race will play out. This time there would be no denying the race’s headliner, as Pxg cruised to a length and a half victory. He was surprisingly not the post time favorite, but he was our pick to win and the eight-year-old gelding got career victory number 15. The winning trainer is Mb Stables, and it is his second win in the race. Jockey J P Spencer, one of the newer riders in the game grabs his first. Congratulations to them! The winning race time is 1:38.88, and that is a new stake record. Let’s take a look at it now:

(1/4 Mile- :23.49)- Fire And Ice grabs the early lead for TwinTowersRacing, but as we go around the opening turn, he will be joined by Nakamura Stables- trained Disciplinary, the surprising post-time favorite. Broad Brush stalks the top two for Czech Out Farms, and a length behind him, we have Chai Danger, for Wolf Ridge Stables. In the middle of the field is where we find our eventual winner from Mb Stables, Pxg, as he patiently runs on the rail, evenly with Cucamonga Sin (Asgar). After a length and a half, it’s the three trailers running alongside one another: Elite Fire (High Voltage), Lumpenproletarian (Jerry Garcia Racing), and Royal Niner (Riggins Racing).

(½ Mile- :46.76)- Heading down the stretch, Fire And Ice starts to get the better of Disciplinary and leads him by a half a length. Broad Brush continues to stalk, and there is a new fourth place horse now as a Cucamonga Sin pushes forward just a bit along the outside. Chai Danger and Pxg run alongside one another, with the others only falling further behind.

(Top of Stretch, 2F To Go)- The leader remains Fire And Ice, and his lead on Disciplinary is still about a half of a length. Midway through the turn, we start to see Pxg moving forward, and at the top of the stretch, he has pulled up along the outside of Broad Brush, the horse that had been stalking the whole way but not really making a push of his own. Cucamonga Sin was not able to sustain his outside run and loses ground, seeing Chai Danger trying to make a pass to his inside. Still seeing nothing out of the other three.

(Finish- 1:38.88)- There was plenty of room for Pxg to come on through between the top two horses, and it was clear that he was making enough progress to get the job done and eventually take over the lead. What was not quite as expected is that he would go on to win by almost two lengths, so it was certainly an impressive run to the wire for the ol’ veteran. Fire And Ice and Disciplinary stay second and third as no one else threatened them. Chai Danger grabs fourth, over Broad Brush and Cucamonga Sin. The other three just seemed to be hanging out all day in the back, with their order ending as Royal Niner, Elite Fire, and Lumpenproletarian.

About The Winner- Pxg, trained by Mb Stables and ridden to victory by J P Spencer, is an eight-year-old gelding by Laffin Five Oh and is out of the late Peppermint Dove. He was bred as a second quarter two-year-old in Texas by Broken Spoke Stables and was acquired by Mb Stables in private sales for $35.000 in February 2019 from Tiratzo. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his fifteenth in 47 starts, and his seventh stake win. His career earnings are now $2,372.660.

Track: Firm
Time: :23²  :46³  1:10   1:38⁴

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 3 – 7 Paid 27.60
$1 Trifecta: 3 – 7 – 2 Paid 58.70

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded