Larry
Knight Jr.’s Alpha Mike Foxtrot appeared to be a certain loser as the
field raced down the backstretch in the $100,000 Maryland Juvenile
Championship, but around the turn and going to the finish line it was
another story as he rallied over the sloppy track to win going away.
Forest
Boyce was riding the son of Two Punch and was forced to check her mount
four times to keep the gelding from running up on horses. When she
finally let Alpha Mike Foxtrot fall back off the leaders and steered him
to the outside, the Richard Small trainee was able to set his sights on
frontrunners Awesome Devine and Lunar Rock and shift into high gear.
Boyce
and her mount were four-wide racing down the stretch but closed fastest
of all and won by 2-1/4 lengths in 1:34.51. Hanky Doodle finished
second and Peeds in a Pod was third.
“The
whole way down the backside he was getting out pretty bad,” said Boyce.
“I just tried to keep him on all fours. He is lovely to ride, you
always know you are going to be right there. He runs hard and if he gets
there, he gets there.”
The win was the 100th of the year for the 28-year-old rider.
Alpha
Mike Foxtrot paid $21.40. His previous best stakes finishes were a
second in the Maryland Million Nursery and a third in the James Lewis,
both at Laurel Park.
“He is just like his mother (Shashobegon),” Small said. “He isn’t really talented but is gritty and as honest as they come.”
Small won two previous Maryland Juvenile Championships, with Legal Control (2004) and Roaring Lion (2006) respectively.
This was the first stakes win for owner Knight, who is married to former jockey Andrea Seefeldt.