Sunrise Smarty leads all the way in Fall Highweight
Thursday’s Grade 3, $95,000
Fall
Highweight went to Sunrise Smarty, who showed the way on the lead and held
off a late charge from Nathan’s H Q to earn his first graded stakes victory. The
98th running of the traditional Thanksgiving Day feature at Aqueduct lost a
little luster when half of the 10 entries were scratched and, unfortunately, favored General Maximus broke down on the far turn and was euthanized.
Owned by West Point Thoroughbreds, B C Stables and Nick Cammarano, Sunrise
Smarty broke from the inside post and was committed to the lead by jockey Ramon
Dominguez, establishing opening splits in :21 2/5 and :44 1/5 while clear. The
four-year-old Smarty Jones colt faced a brief challenge in midstretch Nathan’s H
Q, but had enough left in the final eighth of a mile to cross the wire a
half-length in front.
Shouldering 130 pounds, one less than the runner-up, Sunrise Smarty completed
the six furlongs in 1:09 4/5 on the good track and gave Dominguez, who was
celebrating his 35th birthday, his fourth of five winners for the day.
“Being on the inside, I was committed to go the lead,” Dominguez said. “After
a few strides, I wasn’t too happy with the pace scenario we were facing. I let
him open up a length or two, and, despite how fast we were going, he was able to
relax. At the eighth pole, it looked like they were going to pass him, but he
kept on finding.”
Trained by Mike Hushion, Sunrise Smarty was the second choice in the field of
five and returned payoffs of $6.90, $3.10 and $3. Runner-up in the Groovy Stakes
last fall and the October 9 Duck Dance Stakes two starts previously, the bay
Kentucky-bred has now earned $191,961 from a 12-4-3-1 line.
“He’s a real soldier. He shows up,” Hushion said. “The inside post didn’t
give us any choice but to send him today. I was worried after that first
quarter-mile, which was a bit salty, and again at the eighth pole, when it
looked like they had him in their sights and were going to run him down. But
he’s a tough horse. He’ll race here over the winter, but I don’t have anything
in particular picked out.”
Nathan’s H Q, Flat Bold and Escrow Kid rounded out the order of finish. Caixa
Eletronica, Driven by Success, Calibrachoa, Frazil, and Parent’s Honor were
scratched.
Bred in Kentucky by Dennis Drazin, Sunrise Smarty RNA’ed as a weanling at the
2007 Keeneland November Sale before selling for $100,000 as a 2009 OBS March
two-year-old. He is the first black-type performer out of the winning Seattle
Slew mare Sunrise Slew and hails from the same female family as multiple Irish
champion Law Society; Grade 2 winner and multiple Grade 1-placed Strike Your
Colors; and Group 3 hero Legal Bid.