Fast Boat proved to have the best kick among the closers in Friday’s $200,000 Troy S. (G3) at Saratoga, wearing down long-time leader Carotari to win the 5 1/2-furlong turf dash by a half-length under Tyler Gaffalione.
Sixth in the field of nine as Carotari set fractions of :21.74 and :44.15, Fast Boat made a five-wide bid turning for home and charged home to earn his third stakes win of the season for owner Brad Grady and trainer Joe Sharp.
Fast Boat paid $23.80 after covering the distance in 1:01.24. Carotari, a 23-1 chance, held second by one length over Gear Jockey. The order of finish was completed by Imprimis, 2-1 favorite Bound for Nowhere, Front Run the Fed, Lazuli, Chewing Gum, and Classy John. Among the three scratches was Jaipur (G1) winner Casa Creed.
Three time stakes-placed during 2019-20, the six-year-old Fast Boat is enjoying his best season yet this year. Although starting his campaign with a fourth-place run in the Duncan F. Kenner S. at Fair Grounds, the gelding rebounded to take the Pulse Power Turf Sprint at Sam Houston by a neck and followed up with a half-length win in the Twin Spires Turf Sprint (G2) at Churchill Downs.
Fast Boat never seriously factored in his most recent start, crossing the wire sixth in the six-furlong Jaipur at Belmont. His record now stands at 26-10-1-3, $659,949.
“He prefers a firm turf course, and for the Jaipur, he lost his opportunity at the Grade 1 with the give in the ground,” Sharp explained.
Bred in Kentucky by R.S. Evans, Fast Boat is by City Zip and out of Yellow Boat, by Lemon Drop Kid.
National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame S. (G2)
Twice beaten as the favorite in three previous stakes outings, Public Sector finally came through for the chalk players in the $200,000 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame S. (G2) for three-year-olds.
Backed down to 9-10 from his 2-1 morning line price, Public Sector advanced from fourth around the far turn, took the lead inside the furlong pole and won the one-mile inner turf test by one length over 15-1 shot Annex. In Effect, the 30-1 longest shot on the board, finished third.
The order of finish was rounded out by the pace-setting Next, Easy Time, Wolfie’s Dynaghost, and Original, who was pulled up and walked off after clicking heels with Annex in the stretch.
Owned by Klaravich Stables and trained by Chad Brown, who was winning the race for a sixth time, Public Sector paid $3.80 after covered the distance on firm ground in 1:35.03.
Public Sector, who now sports a record of 7-3-3-0, $268,600, won on debut at Saratoga last summer by two lengths, but settled for second behind Fire At Will as the odds-on choice in the Pilgrim (G2) in his next start. Fire At Will had Public Sector’s number again in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) at Keeneland, as Public Sector made no impact in 12th after a troubled trip.
Second against allowance foe sin his return to action on May 2, Public Sector rebounded to beat allowance rivals on June 4, but fell a head short of catching Original in the one-mile Manila S. at Belmont last month.
“Last time, I think it was just a slow pace. I got stuck behind horses. He couldn’t really bring me anywhere around the turn and I had to make up a lot of ground on the slow pace,” Prat said. “Today, we had a good draw and he broke well and put me in the race. The pace was a bit stronger and it worked out well.”
Bred in Great Britain by the Kathryn Stud, Public Sector is by Kingman and out of Parle Moi, by Montjeu. The colt’s second dam was multiple Group 3 winner Di Moi Oui.
Alydar S.
Art Collector, the 2020 Blue Grass (G2) winner, earned his first victory in nearly a year when making all against seven rivals in the $120,000 Alydar S., a 1 1/8-mile stakes restricted to nonwinners of a stakes this year.
Under Luis Saez, Art Collector won by 1 1/2 lengths from Night Ops. Math Wizard finished a distant third.
Owned by Bruce Lunsford and saddled for the first time by Bill Mott, Art Collector paid $5.60 after covering one lap of the fast Saratoga strip in 1:48.20.
A 3 1/2-length winner of the Blue Grass over the champion filly Swiss Skydiver, Art Collector subsequently captured the Ellis Park Derby. Forced to scratch from last September’s Kentucky Derby (G1), he next ran fourth behind Swiss Skydiver in the Preakness (G1) and eighth in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1).
Art Collector’s only start since the Breeders’ Cup was a sixth-place finish in the seven-furlong Kelly’s Landing S. at Churchill Downs in late June.
