Federal Judge secures victory in the Phoenix (Courtney Snow/Past The Wire)
Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix (G2): The margin of victory was the largest since 1995
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Keeneland Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Federal Judge took command at the start and then hit another gear at the top of the stretch to post an emphatic 5½-length victory in the Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix (G2) for 3-year-olds and up
The margin of victory was the largest since Golden Gear won by 7½ lengths in 1995.
Trained by Brad Cox and ridden by Flavien Prat, Federal Judge completed the 6 furlongs in 1:08.20, the fastest clocking for the race since 2000 when Five Star Day won in 1:07 4/5.
In winning for the fourth time in six starts, Federal Judge led the field of seven through opening fractions of :21.62 and :43.97 with Comedy Town in closest pursuit.
At the head of the lane, Federal Judge began to widen his margin and coasted to victory with favored Nakatomi rallying for second.
Federal Judge is a 4-year-old Florida-bred son of Army Mule out of the Congaree mare Congarette. The victory was worth $181,350 and increased Federal Judge’s earnings to $402,960.
Sent off as the second choice, Federal Judge rewarded his backers with payoffs of $5.48, $2.90 and $2.44. Nakatomi, ridden by Tyler Gaffalione, returned $2.80 and $2.16 with Comedy Town finishing another half-length back in third under Drayden Van Dyke and paying $3.18 to show.
Here Mi Song was another 1¼ lengths back in fourth and was followed in order by My Buddy B, Manny Wah and Swirvin.
Quotes from the $350,000 Stoll Keenon Ogden Phoenix (G2)
Flavien Prat (winning rider of Federal Judge): “Yeah, he made it look simple. He broke very well today. I was a bit worried with (breaking from) the one (post), but he broke sharp and got himself into the race and did the rest. I thought he was going a good clip, but he was comfortable, and he was at ease.”
Elliott Walden (of WinStar Farm, which owns Federal Judge in partnership with Siena Farm) On whether the team at WinStar had expectations that he was “this kind of horse” at this point in his career: “Yeah, we did. We’ve loved him all along. He needed a little break and we actually had to geld him. He’s such a beautiful horse and he got real heavy on us, so we gelded him to lighten him up and it really did the trick.”
On whether the team is ready for the Breeders’ Cup: “Hope so. Excited.”
Tyler Gaffalione (rider of runner-up and beaten favorite Nakatomi): “Everything kind of went to plan today, but he was really holding (back).”
Wesley Ward (trainer of Nakatomi): “Speed was tough today. Sets us up well for the Breeders’ Cup. Sometimes you run two big races on top of the Breeders’ Cup, and it will draw you back but maybe we’ll turn a negative into a positive. He ran a real credible race on a real speed-biased track.
“I’m happy but I’m not because I always want to win this race because I haven’t yet.”
Drayden Van Dyke (rider of third-place finisher Comedy Town): “Broke well, obviously the track is fast. We were trying to win today. If I would’ve been a little bit more patient with him today, we could’ve run second, but we got third. He ran his race.”
