ELMONT, NY – Olympico went from last to first in Saturday’s Fort Marcy Stakes (G3) at Belmont Park. This was the first start in the US for the four-year-old son of Rajsaman and his first career stakes win.
The post-time favorite, Robert Bruce, went straight to the lead and was joined by Dr. Edgar. Channel Cat was close behind and the rest of the field sat back more than two lengths off the leaders. Into the backstretch, Dr. Edgar claimed sole possession of the lead and was off to the races as he put distance between himself and Robert Bruce. Channel Cat moved up to join Dr. Edgar on the lead and the two horses controlled the pace as they went :24.84, :50.09, and 1:15.16.
Into the second turn, Dr. Edgar still had a slight lead on the rest of the field but both Channel Cat and Robert Bruce put the pressure on as they drew even with the leader at the top of the stretch. Robert Bruce, however, couldn’t hold on and quickly faded to finish fifth. From the absolute back of the pack, Olympico exploded right down the middle of the track and flew past the rest of the field, finishing three lengths ahead of Dr. Edgar who was second best. Cullum Road made a nice late run to finish third and Channel Cat finished fourth.
“With the horse making his first start in America, I knew he was probably going to break good or break bad,” said jockey Kendrick Carmouche, who picked up his third win on the day. “It was one of the two and he broke bad, but I never got in a rush when that happened. I was relaxed.”
“The turf course is real soft and he loved it,” Carmouche added. “I knew at the half-mile pole the race was over. I just had to find a spot to win. He had plenty of run and I have to thank Chad Brown and Michael Dubb for giving me the opportunity.”
Olympico returned $39.20 to win, $14.40 to place, and $8.80 to show. Dr. Edgar brought back $4.70 to place and $3.80 to show, while Cullum Road paid $13.80 to show.
Scratched: Control Group (Main-Track-Only)
