Muniz Memorial Handicap (Grade 2)- $300.000 Purse
FG- For Four Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Eighth on the Turf
March 22, 2025

Since being picked up by Asgar, Sly had been running well and that led to him making his stake debut here in the Muniz Memorial Handicap. His form since breaking his maiden made him appealing in this field, and he would be our second choice for the race. Going off at odds of 8/1, Sly found himself at the back early on, right where he likes it, and came on strong to pick up the victory! For Asgar, this is his first Muniz Memorial Handicap trophy, and the second for jockey P Lopez. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:44.70, which would have put him in a dead heat with last year’s winner, and the second quickest time of this race, overall. Let’s take a look at it now:

(½ Mile- :46.81)- Our Athletes- trained Hawaiian Lord goes out to the lead and is able to get over to the rail in plenty of time to round the opening turn. They are four wide right behind him, with Booker (TwinTowersRacing) running to the inside of Tower Isle (Winning Link Stables) and In A Love Song (Mb Stables), with Mob Ties (Onlineracingclub.com) within a length in the fourth lane. Right behind them, Prince Ferro (Maxmillion Farm) and Gallant (Pan Farms) run together, and it’s at least three lengths to the two trailers. This is where we find our eventual winner from Asgar, Sly, as well as Kegger (Threshold).

(3/4 Mile- 1:10.19)- Not much changes with how those at the front of the field are running. Hawaiian Lord is still in front of a group of four by a length entering the final turn. In A Love Song and Mob Ties, for now, have a slight upper hand on Booker and Tower Isle, but all of those are in a good running position. Meanwhile, Prince Ferro was showing more interest and looked to follow In A Love Song around the turn. As the run down the backstretch concluded, Sly began to show more interest, quickly pulling away from Kegger as he looked to gain ground on the rest of the field. Soon, he would be catching Gallant, who looked to be tiring already at this point.

(Top of Stretch, 2F To Go)- Hawaiian Lord is still the leader, but they are coming at him from all sides now entering the stretch. In A Love Song was inching closer while on the outside, and looking good on the rail was Booker, with a clear lane in front of him. Tower Isle was keeping pace with them, and an opening had presented itself between he and In A Love Song which Prince Ferro was about to capitalize on. Don’t forget about Mob Ties, either, who was hanging tough on the outside. With all of those going on near the front, the only option for P Lopez with Sly would be take a far outside move, and his ride seemed up to the task. There was still about three or so to make up on Hawaiian Lord, but now he could sweep on by on the outside. Behind him, Gallant was out of gas, and Kegger had not tapped into his best stride.

(Finish- 1:44.70)- It was very close with about a furlong to go as seven of them were within a length of one another. This was good news for Sly as clearly, he was running the quickest out of all of them as he made up ground. Booker was looking like the primary one to worry about here as he ran well on the rail. Prince Ferro was doing good squeezing through to find room, as well. Approaching the wire, Sly would take the lead, and at the point, the race was won. He’d go on to win by half a length over Prince Ferro, Booker, and In A Love Song. It was about a length from them to Hawaiian Lord and Mob Ties. Kegger decided to start running way too late, defeating only Tower Isle and Gallant.

About The Winner- Sly, trained by Asgar and ridden to victory by P Lopez, is a five-year-old gelding by Commanding The Storm and is out of Slytherin. He was bred in New York by Arindel as a first quarter two-year-old, and was acquired by Asgar in the June 2024 auction for just $2.540. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his third in nine starts and first stake win. His career earnings are now $232.990.

Track: Firm
Time: :46⁴  1:10  1:33²  1:44³

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 6 – 5 Paid 52.10
$1 Trifecta: 6 – 5 – 2 Paid 1,514.80

Scratched: Green Flag

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES