Michael Langford’s Carve rallied three wide to post a neck victory in the
Grade 3, $300,000
Prairie Meadows Cornhusker to cap off the Iowa Festival of Racing Saturday
night at Prairie Meadows.
Right to Vote tried to lead all the way home, setting splits of :23 2/5, :47
1/5, 1:11 and 1:36 4/5 while tracked by Ground Transport. Carve ran in third
under Jesus Castanon while three wide before putting in his move rounding the
turn. The First Samurai gelding kept motoring while wide down the lane and just
got up to deny Right to Vote on the wire while running nine furlongs over the
sloppy going in 1:50 2/5.
Carve paid $10.20 as the 4-1 second choice. Right to Vote was a length in
front of Ground Transport on the line, who in turn held 6-5 favorite Golden
Ticket by a neck to fourth. Lent, Eriugena, Bellarmine and Coin Broker completed
the order under the wire.
The Cornhusker was Carve’s first stakes win, though the Brad Cox-trained
four-year-old had previously placed in five other black-type events including
last year’s Grade 1 Arkansas Derby and this season’s Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap.
Saturday night’s win boosted his career earnings to $562,331 and his line now
reads 14-5-1-4.
Bred in Kentucky by Claiborne Farm and Adele Dilschneider, Carve is out of
the A.P. Indy mare Apt and counts as a full sibling Apropos, who suffered a head
injury when flipping in the paddock ahead of the Grade 3 Chicago Handicap at
Arlington and was euthanized earlier on Saturday.
Apt is herself a half-sister to champion older male, Breeders’ Cup Classic
star and multiple Grade 1-winning millionaire Blame, who handed superstar mare
Zenyatta the only defeat of her career.
Carve’s fourth dam is blue-hen mare Special, from whom is descended champion
sires Sadler’s Wells and Nureyev. This female family is also responsible for
Size, who captured the Grade 3 Iowa Oaks earlier at Prairie Meadows on Saturday.
Bet Horseracing Free Online at TwinSpires.com