Commissioner prevails in Gulfstream allowance off layoff

Top Billing, the 3-1 second choice ridden by Joel Rosario, appeared on his

way to victory in mid-stretch but lacked running room between Commissioner to

his inside and Hy Kodiak Warrior to his outside. With running room to his

inside, Commissioner took charge and out-battled Top Billing to the wire. Hy

Kodiak Warrior finished third, another two lengths back.

"I had a very good trip. He's a very nice colt, and I think he'll be very

good in the future," Lezcano said. "He got to the front and then he waited for

the horses, and when he felt the horse beside him he took off again. I think

he's very nice but he's still learning."

"It was a good educational trip," Pletcher said. "It was a big effort. It was

his first race since Saratoga. He's a big powerful horse. He's still improving,

still learning to run. He's still learning to finish and focus, so I think

there's room for improvement."

Commissioner, owned and bred by WinStar Farm, finished second at a mile in

his debut at Monmouth in August before capturing a 1 1/8-mile maiden race at

Saratoga on August 28. The Kentucky-bred colt was unraced until Friday's return

to action.

"At that time your options are pretty limited for a horse that wants a mile

and an eighth," Pletcher said. "We didn't feel like he was mature enough to want

to go to California and go that route, so it was kind of a tactical plan to give

him some time off and bring him back for his three-year-old campaign in mind.

Most of the A.P. Indys I've been around get better as they get older. To see

what he did today was very encouraging.

"We've got a lot of options. I like the mile and an eighth, but we won't have

a mile-and-an-eighth option before the Florida Derby (March 29), so we might

have to back up to a mile and a sixteenth. We'll see how he bounces out of it,

but you have to put the Fountain of Youth (February 22) in the mix."

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