Uriah St. Lewis (EQUI-PHOTO)
NYRA Press Office
OZONE PARK, N.Y.— Deposition will make his graded stakes debut for owner-trainer Uriah St. Lewis in Saturday’s Grade 3, $250,000 Withers, a nine-furlong test for sophomores, at Aqueduct Racetrack.
The Withers, a prep race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, will award the top-five finishers 20-10-6-4-2 qualifying points, respectively, towards the prestigious Grade 1 test on May 4 at Churchill Downs.
The 3-year-old Constitution colt, a $77,000 purchase by St. Lewis’ Trin-Brook Stable at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale, graduated at fifth asking when traveling one mile and 70 yards around two turns on November 21 at Parx Racing.
He followed last out with a distant seventh-place finish in the seven-furlong Heft on December 30 at Laurel Park. Deposition has breezed back twice over the Parx main track, including a five-eighths bullet gate breeze with blinkers on in 58.58 on January 23.
“We put blinkers on him and that’s the reason we took him to the gate,” St. Lewis said. “The jockey said was looking around in his last race at Laurel instead of paying attention.”
Deposition, who will sport blinkers on Saturday when he exits post 2 under Dexter Haddock, made one previous appearance at the Big A, finishing a troubled sixth on November 4 after stumbling at the break in a one-turn mile maiden special weight in which Kentucky Derby prospects Sierra Leone and Change of Command finished one-two. He returned 10 days later to finish a good third in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden special weight at Parx where he was blocked at the quarter-pole before flattening.
“He’s been a little unlucky. That’s why we ran him back quick because we wanted to break his maiden,” St. Lewis said. “He’s a nice horse and does everything right. With a little luck, he might win a few races.”
St. Lewis said two turns and a patient trip allowed Deposition to finally graduate.
“He was blocked in that race, too. He waited for a spot and when it opened, he went about his business,” St. Lewis said.
Deposition’s second dam is dual Grade 1-winner Country Star, who captured the Darley Alcibiades and Hollywood Starlet as a juvenile before running sixth in the following year’s Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks.
“He’s a good-looking animal. He carries good flesh,” St. Lewis said. “He has good family and he might want turf at some point, too.”
St. Lewis has a history of posting upset stakes scores on the NYRA circuit, famously taking the 2018 Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park with 45-1 shot Discreet Lover. In 2021, he captured the Big A’s Queens County with 42-1 shot Forewarned.
“I don’t mind taking a shot. If they can run, I bring them. If they can’t, they stay here,” said St. Lewis, with a laugh.
