Highland Falls dueled with odds-on favorite Arthur’s Ride from the start, then left him in the dust for a four-length victory in the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) on Sunday at Saratoga Race Course
Highland Falls. NYRA Photo.
Highland Falls posted the perfect upset in the Jockey Club Gold Cup
The upset for the 7-1 third choice trained by Brad Cox earned the 4-year-old colt an all-fees paid, automatic berth to the Cup Classic (G1) on Nov. 2 at Del Mar.
Flavien Prat, aboard for the first time after replacing Florent Geroux, won a record-setting 13th graded stakes races as well as his 17th stakes overall.
Godolphin-owned Highland Falls ($16) is the latest longshot to secure a BC Classic spot – on Saturday, 22-1 Mixto won the Pacific Classic (G1) at Del Mar.
Arthur’s Ride, winner of the Whitney Stakes (G1) to earn his automatic berth to the BC Classic, was pressed for the lead for the first mile by Highland Falls, who raced outside the favorite before Prat moved him inside along the backstretch.
By the time the field of seven reached the quarter-pole, Arthur’s Ride began to fade, Highland Falls pulled ahead and stretched his lead from the eighth pole on, while Pyrenees rallied for second.
‘He ran well. I thought Flavien did a great job of getting him out. That was the plan to not let the other colt [Arthur’s Ride] get away and he didn’t,’’ Cox said. “He broke running and made Junior [Alvarado] use his horse a little bit going into the first turn. We were able to hook onto him and he stayed on going the mile and a quarter. We always thought he was a mile and a quarter horse, and he proved it today.”
Disarm was third, followed by Tapit Trice, Arthur’s Ride, Bright Future, and Kuchar.
Highland Falls ran second to Tapit Trice in the Monmouth Cup (G3) on July 20 in his previous start following a victory in the Blame Stakes on June 1 at Churchill Downs. The son of Curlin improved to 9-5-3-1 and catapulted his earnings to nearly $1.2 million.
“I thought if one horse could handle the distance, it was him,’’ Prat said. “We wanted to break running and then try to make a good pace. That was the case, and we got past the wire for the first time, it felt like Arthur’s Ride was going a bit quicker easier than me, so I don’t need to go on, but I was able to get him outside after that and give him another push. He was just a well of stamina.
“I wanted to get him into a good rhythm and get him running going into the first turn, and I didn’t want to let Arthur’s Ride get an easy lead. And then, that was it.”
Irad Ortiz, Jr., wins five on the day, including Bernard Baruch
Earlier on the card, favorite Running Bee ($5.80) won the $150,000 Bernard Baruch Stakes for 3-year-olds and up on the turf. It was the fifth win of the day for Irad Ortiz., Jr., who now has an insurmountable lead in the jockey standings with 51 victories with one day left in the summer season.