Fulsome gave his Matt Winn S. (G3) rivals the blues, rallying to win going away by a 3 3/4-length margin at Churchill Downs. A Juddmonte Farm homebred son of Into Mischief, Fulsome is a three-year-old on the rise for Brad Cox.
Off as the slight 17-10 favorite, the bay colt broke slowly with Florent Geroux, racing last of seven through the opening half-mile, and launched a wide bid into contention on the far turn. Fulsome blew past rivals entering the stretch and won under wraps late, completing the 1 1/16-mile distance in 1:42.88.
“I was pretty confident he could take some dirt in his face and got him to relax early,” Geroux said. “I was just hoping they were going fast up front after the slow break. He was able to go past those horses easily to win.”
Helium, who was exiting an eighth in the Kentucky Derby, established opening splits in :23.75, :48.69, and 1:13.26 before weakening third. O Besos, fifth in the Kentucky Derby, advanced to a prominent spot turning for home but could not match strides with the winner, finishing 1 1/4 lengths clear in second as the 19-10 second choice.
Southern Passage, Ready to Pounce, Game Day Play, and Sittin On Go completed the order.
Fulsome opened his racing career on turf, breaking his maiden the third time out and recording a fourth in the Black Gold S. at Fair Grounds. His fifth start, an entry-level allowance at Keeneland in mid-April, was switched from turf to the main track, and he rolled to a convincing triumph.
In his previous outing, Fulsome drew off to a 1 1/2-length decision in the May 1 Oaklawn S. He’s now earned $ 373,854 from a 7-4-1-0 record. The Kentucky-bred is out of the Distorted Humor mare Flourish, who has also produced a pair of stakes-placed runners. She counts multiple Grade 1 winners Sightseek and Tates Creek as half-sisters.
