Live Oak Plantation’s AROUND THE CAPE (Carson City) surged to the front in
midstretch and powered home a three-quarters of a length winner of the $111,500
Jaipur H. (G3) over the Belmont turf on Sunday. Breaking alertly from his
outermost post, the four-year-old colt settled slightly off the pace as pacesetter Bold Decision (Precise End) whittled through early splits of :21 4/5
and :44 1/5 for the opening half-mile. As the group approached the stretch,
Cornelio Velasquez shook up Around the Cape and he responded, closing strongly
in completing the six furlongs over firm turf in a course record 1:07 1/5.
Trained by Bill Mott, the colt rewarded his backers with mutuels of $5.70, $4.20
and $2.80 as the 9-5 second choice.
Bold Decision proved to be a stubborn foe, outrunning his 35-1 odds in
staying on for the place. The runner-up gave back $21.40 and $10.80 while
completing the $157.50 exacta. Summer Service (Siberian Summer) encountered some
traffic trouble on the rail late and could do no better than third, a neck shy
of the place spot. Summer Service paid $4.30 at 7-1, and rounded out the $669 trifecta. Not Phone (Arg) (Speakerphone), the 6-5 favorite, was next and
followed by Primary Suspect (Hennessy), Si O No (Chi) (Special Quest [Fr]) and Blakelock (Summer Squall). War Plan (Fusaichi Pegasus) and Spooky Mulder
(Brunswick) were withdrawn.
Around the Cape finally got his well deserved stakes win, following placings
in the 2005 Swale S. (G2) and most recently, the Shakertown S. (G3). For his
career, the colt sports a 12-4-3-3 mark with $213,862 in earnings.
Bred in the Bluegrass State by Needham/Betz, et al., the winner fetched a bid
of $290,000 at the 2003 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga August Yearling Sale. He was
produced from the stakes winning Song of Africa (Alzao) and counts an unraced
two-year-old named Show Tune (Unbridled’s Song) as a half-brother, as well as a
2006 colt by Strong Hope.