The Cliff Hanger Stakes ($100.00 Purse)
MTH- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Turf
May 23, 2026

Over his 18-race career heading into the Cliff Hanger Stakes, Eximius has quietly been a productive horse in overnights, and most of those of races have been at high or mid level tracks. On Saturday, he would make just his second career start in a stake, and the previous attempt was a long time ago. Some rain would leave the turf course listed as being good, and that would not bother Eximius at all as he earns his biggest victory. He’s trained by Jokerjokes and was ridden by J C Ferrer, and each of them get their first win in the race. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:40.89, which is quicker than the only prior edition of this race (2013) held at this distance, and the turf was listed as firm that day. Let’s take a look at it!

(1/4 Mile- :23.85)- After an initial battle with three others, Bears Stable’s Stop Hammertime dances to the lead and pulls a length ahead. Our eventual winner, Eximius, is right there for Jokerjoes, and will run three wide into the opening turn. Terra Authority is third on the rail for Alydar Stables while High Voltage’s King Of Hyrule runs with this group of stalkers. There’s about two to Dirtiest Sin (The Sidley Stud) and another to the trailer, Fayette County (Maxmillion Farm).

(½ Mile- :47.64)- Stop Hammertime handles the turn very well, but the same can be said for Eximius. Stop Hammertime still leads the one by a length, but Eximius has been able to pull a full length ahead of both Terra Authority and King Of Hyrule. There’s a break of about three now from them to Dirtiest Sin and Fayette County.

(Top of Stretch, 1.5F To Go)- Completing the backstretch trip and rounding the turn, Stop Hammertime and Eximius are becoming the class of the field. These two are both running well, and seem strong entering the stretch as it begins to look like they have left the rest of the field behind. Both Terra Authority and King Of Hyrule have only dropped further back, and Fayette County looks to take over third but still has a lot of work to do to threaten the leaders. Dirtiest Sin runs a length behind them.

(Finish- 1:40.89)- We would get our two horse battle in the stretch, and with a furlong to go, they were running evenly, which is good news for fans of Eximius. Stop Hammertime put up a fight, but Eximius had just a little more in his stride to begin to inch away, and will go on to win by about half a length. Following Stop Hammertime in second, Fayette County emerged as the best of the rest, but never threatened for more than third. Dirtiest Sin gets the fourth place check over disappointing post-time favorite Terra Authority and King Of Hyrule.

About The Winner- Eximius, trained by Jokerjoes and ridden to victory by J C Ferrer, is a four year old gelding by Higgs Boson and is out of Hog Callin. He was bred by Fractious in California as a yearling and was acquired by Jokerjokes via Apache Warrior for $58.00 in a December 2025 private sale. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his sixth in 19 starts and his first stake win. His career earnings are now $227.78.

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded