The Razorback Handicap (Grade 3)- $300.000 Purse
OP- For Four Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
March 19, 2016

Most of those who put money down on the race were looking past Sqawilther.   He had come into the race on a strong run of form, with three wins in his last five starts, with another close second.  Despite that, he would be the longest shot on the boards, at odds of about 18/1.   Perhaps, people were scared off by the fact that he had only been in one graded stake and failed to hit the board in it.  But that was at a shorter distance, and Sqawilther was coming on at the end.  Also, after that race trainer Australia Wide seemed to make a tactical adjustment and started to have his horse be closer to the front.  We saw that, and made him one of our picks, and if you boxed our trifecta picks, you got yourself that $181.80 payout.   After this victory, we suspect that Sqawilther will get much more respect from the betting public.  For the trainer, Australia Wide, it’s his first Razorback Handicap trophy, so he’ll have to find room for a new one in his vast virtual trophy chest.   M Mena also rode his first Razorback winner.  The ending race time of 1:41.04 is certainly impressive, but only rates as the 4th quickest edition of this race.  Here’s a deeper look at the result.

1st- 6- Sqawilther (18/1)-   Our eventual race winner from Australia Wide was sharp right out of the gate, and after a brief challenge from Im Too Confident, he was able to get all the way to the rail in time for the opening turn.  While running in the turn, he pulled out to an advantage of a length and a half, setting the opening quarter in :23.63.   He would continue to race very well down the backstretch, and was not about to let Im Too Confident sneak by him, setting the opening half fraction in :47.23.  In the turn, Im Too Confident looked to make his run to the lead, and pulled up alongside, but Sqawilther absolutely refused to relinquish the lead.   With just about a furlong to go, Sqawilther was at his best, having more in the tank then Im Too Confident would have today, and he began to extend his lead further.   He would win in strong stride all the way to the wire, and may have never known there was more then one other horse in his race, because the others were never near him.  It was impressive performance, accomplished in a race time of 1:41.04.  Congratulations to all the connections on this victory! Sqawilther is a four year old colt by Pink Panther and out of Sqaw Will (that line goes far back to Rhythm).  He was bred in Kentucky as a second quarter foal by Ekli Stable.  He raced a few times for his breeder, before being purchased by Australia Wide in late April last year for $225.000.  Congrats again!

2nd- 5- Im Too Confident (8/5)- The betting favorite from Mb Stables got off to a strong start, running side by side with Sqawilther heading into the opening turn before jockey P Lopez settled in a length behind the frontunner.  He would maintain this position for the entire backstretch trip, although it looked as though part of that reason may have simply been because Sqawilther was refusing to let him go by at this time as well.  The two of them began to pull away from third during this portion of the race.   By the end of the long OP turn, he had pulled even with Sqawilther, and the two of them appeared to be about to give the slip to the rest of the field.  In the stretch, not only did he fail to get by Sqawilther, but he was soundly beaten by him in the stretch, and almost fell into the clutches of the hard charging Milestone late.

3rd- 4- Milestone (3/1)- The Mcl Stables entry seemed a little slow out of the gate, and would be trailing them all as they rounded the opening turn.  Heading into the backstretch, he was still last with about five lengths to make up.  Towards the end of the backstretch run, R A Baze looked to start making up some of that ground, and he would complete passes of Accidental Notice and Royal Redemmer rather easily.  He was good in the turn, and particularly strong in the stretch.  Unfortunately for the trainer, the top two had put too much distance between them.  Milestone made a very valiant bid to get second, but needed more race track.

4th- 2- Party In The Usa (9/2)- The other entry from Mb Stables was not quite as fast as Sqawilther and Im Too Confident out of the gate, but he also started fairly well and would assume a position of stalking his stablemate for the run down the backstretch.  He could not keep up with the top two, and as the run into the turn began, he was falling into the clutches of the three behind him.  In the stretch, he did not show much and was simply looking to hang on and stay ahead of the bottom two.

5th- 3- Accidental Notice (4/1)- It was a little surprising to see the Joseph Stables entry near the back of the pack early, as we are more used to seeing him be up on the lead.  He would stay near the back of the pack during the backstretch run, and did not look to advance at the same time Milestone made his move.  When it came time to close, Accidental Notice was not able to adapt to this racing style, and there was never such a bid made.

6th- 1- Royal Redeemer (6/1)- Got off to a rather average start for trainer Maxmillion Farm.  Made his way around the opening turn in the fourth position, four lengths from the lead. Was in a good position to make a move as they moved into the turn with a clear lane in front of him, but was not able to move forward.  He continued to show nothing in the turn, and by the end of the race, it was apparent that Royal Redeemer was just not ready to run here today.

Track: Fast
Time: :23³  :47¹  1:10³  1:41

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 6 – 5 Paid 36.30
$1 Trifecta: 6 – 5 – 4 Paid 181.80

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES