In a thrilling stretch run over a sloppy track, Mindframe rallied eight wide and edged Nysos and Banishing at the wire to win the $1 million Churchill Downs (G1) on Saturday.
The 7-furlong sprint was one of the races on the Kentucky Derby undercard.
Stewards reviewed the finished for a few minutes before declaring Mindframe ($9.08) as the winner, with Nysos and Banishing in a dead heat for second. Book’em Danno was a head back in fourth, followed by Mullikin, Just Steel, Tejano Twist, Hoist the Gold, Giant Mischief, Extra Anejo, and Here Mi Song.
Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., Mindframe won in a time of 1:22.64.
Mullikin led around the far turn with Nysos and Book’em Danno making their bids. Book’em Danno led briefly at the sixteenth pole before Banishing came through between horses, but Mindframe’s rally was best of all.
🧠 Think Big gets up in time to takes the G2 TwinSpires Turf Sprint!@_benacurtis was in the irons for trainer Michael Stidham!
🎥TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/mMwOWP8qIF
— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) May 3, 2025
“My horse was so game today. He had so many horses inside of him that he just had to keep fighting the entire way to the wire,’’ said Ortiz. “He does not want to lose and kept finding more the more challenges he got.”
The 4-year-old owned by Mike Repole ran second in the Belmont Stakes (G1) and Haskell Stakes (G1) last year and has won four of six starts in 2025.
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