Saturday’s $301,380 Bing Crosby Stakes (G1), a “Win & You’re In” for the TwinSpires.com Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1), saw Ransom the Moon earn the coveted guaranteed berth to that November 4 contest at Del Mar, but not without some very tense moments both before and during the race.
The suspense began when Magic Taste, the 91-1 longest shot in the nine-horse field, broke through the gate. It was a near thing, but the assistant starter managed to hold onto the stakes-debuting five-year-old gelding. Unfortunately, during the struggle, jockey Tiago Pereira banged his ankle pretty good. He limped around for a moment before returning to the saddle.
Some may have wondered if the excitement would affect the beginning of the race, but all the runners broke smooth.
It was only after the field began running that champion sprinter Drefong, the 9-5 second choice making his first start in this spot since capturing last November’s Breeders’ Cup Sprint, decided he wanted to go the other way and took a sharp left hand turn, sending jockey Mike Smith for a hard tumble to the ground.
The gate was positioned behind the turn onto the backstretch, and Drefong nearly took the gap going the wrong way. At the last moment he gunned up the rail and proceeded to dash along the inside of St. Joe Bay, who set the opening quarter mile in :22.19. Roy H surged up to St. Joe Bay’s outside and stuck his head in front past a half-mile in :45.52.
All the riders were keeping an eye on Drefong, but last year’s Breeders’ Cup Sprint victor maintained his spot on the inside. It was only rounding the turn that he sprinted in front of St. Joe Bay and then drifted out. St. Joe Bay was forced to take up while Roy H and Moe Candy, who had rallied up to the latter’s outside, were forced out into the middle of the track on the bend.
St. Joe Bay was out of contention at this point but Roy H and Moe Candy dug in to make up the ground they had lost. Unfortunately for them, Ransom the Moon had taken full advantage of the open path before him and closed fast up the inside. The bay horse powered home a 1 1/2 length winner under jockey Flavien Prat and completed the six-furlong contest over Del Mar’s fast main track in 1:09.63.
Roy H was best of the rest as the 8-5 favorite, 1 1/2 lengths in front of Moe Candy on the wire. It was another 1 3/4 lengths back to Solid Wager, who was followed by Denman’s Call, Magic Taste and St. Joe Bay.
Ransom the Moon paid $10.80 as the 4-1 third choice for the Bing Crosby win, which improved his career record to 19-5-6-1. The Malibu Moon five-year-old actually never even faced stakes competition until this season. The Ontario-bred started out with trainer Malcolm Pierce and spent much of his time going routes of ground at Woodbine, running on both the synthetic track and turf course.
Ransom the Moon was transferred to trainer Philip D’Amato after concluding 2016 with a runner-up effort against allowance/optional claiming rivals at Woodbine on December 4. He captured his first start for his new barn when romping by 4 1/4 lengths in a 6 1/2-furlong allowance/optional claimer at Santa Anita Park on April 30 and made his stakes bow in the Kona Gold Stakes (G2) one race later at the same distance.
The bay horse scored his stakes debut by 2 1/4 lengths, and last out just missed by a neck when second in the San Carlos Stakes (G2) going seven furlongs on July 1. Cutting back to six furlongs here, Ransom the Moon has now banked $520,829 in lifetime earnings.
Bred by Sam-Son Farm, Ransom the Moon is campaigned by Mark Martinez’s Agave Racing Stable and Jeffry Wilke. He is the first registered stake winner out of Grade 3-placed stakes vixen Count to Three, who is herself a daughter of Grade 1 heroine Countus In.
BING CROSBY QUOTES
Mike Smith, jockey Drefong
“I’m fine. It’s just too bad it happened. The horse just outside me (St. Joe Bay), just brushed me a little bit and sent him (Drefong) left toward the gap. Then he just ducked for it (the gap) and I came off. If I don’t get brushed, I think I go right through there and I’m going to be fine. But they tell me the horse is OK, and I’m OK. It’s just one of those things.”
Flavien Prat, jockey Ransom the Moon, winner
“On the backside I was concerned (about the loose horse, Drefong). I thought he was going to cause me problems. But I stayed behind him and then on the turn, he went outside and took the leader (Roy H) out with him. I got to go inside and it worked out perfectly.
“My horse is a really nice horse and I think six furlongs is his best distance. I got lucky today. Sometimes racing is like that.”
Philip D’Amato, trainer Ransom the Moon, winner
“Flavien (Prat) did a great job feeling out the dynamics of the race and hats off to Peter Miller’s horse (Roy H), who ran a really good race. The weird thing is I ran a filly in the race today (Table for Three) who did the same thing Drefong did, she tried to make the gap too. Luckily everyone is all right. We had to kind of sit behind Drefong and we were in the right spot at the top of the lane when he kind of drifted out.
“This horse is such a big, strong, good-looking Adonis of a horse and since trying him on the dirt he has been a totally different animal. We’ll probably prep him on the dirt at Santa Anita and then come back here for the Breeders’ Cup.”
Paco Lopez, jockey Roy H, second
“My horse was running really well and then the loose horse changed everything. I was trying to work around him, but we just kept getting pushed out. I don’t know if I would have won if it hadn’t happened, but I think I surely could have.
“Horse racing. What can you do?”
Victor Espinoza, jockey Moe Candy, third
“Really good race for him. We get pushed way out in the middle of the track (by the loose horse) and it just happened. There it is. He ran good, though. A very good race for him.”
Gary Stevens, jockey Kobe’s Back, fourth
“He broke slow today. He’ll break slow the next time he runs. That’s what he does. But he came running and finished up well. He pulled up happy. He had some real life in him today. A good race for him. He felt good.”
