Silverton Hill LLC’s Havelock made a
three-wide rally in the stretch to edge favored Country Day at the wire in the
$100,000 Arlington Sprint on Saturday at Arlington Park. With Jermaine
Bridgmohan aboard, the Darrin Miller-trained son of Great Notion covered the 5
½ furlongs over firm turf in 1:02.71.
Birdie Beats Par, second choice in the
wagering, made the early pace in the race through fractions of 22.27 seconds
and 45.27 seconds. At the top of the stretch, Country Day engaged that
rival and the pair battled for an eighth of a mile before being joined in the
center of the course by the eventual winner, who took the lead in the shadow of
the wire to prevail by just a neck.
“I had a perfect trip,” said winning jockey Jermaine
Bridgmohan. “There were a couple of speed horses outside that came over
on us, so we had the luxury of sitting in the pocket position on the
outside. When I asked her, she was there for me.”
Shaun Bridgmohan, older brother to Jermaine, said, “Didn't
like (losing the photo finish to his younger brother) very much, but nothing I
can do about it. (My horse) ran hard the whole way, he just got tired at the
end.”
The Arlington Sprint was the first
stakes victory for the homebred 4-year-old gelding, who earned $57,600 to push
his bankroll to $152,077 while improving his overall record to four wins from
11 starts. On turf, Havelock
now sports a record of three wins from six starts.
Longshot Wekiva Wachee closed well to
finish third in the nine-horse field, followed by Birdie Beats Par, Yankee
Injunuity, Homeboykris, Chief of Affairs, Capitol Appeal and Threeforall.
Havelock paid
$14.20, $5.60 and $4.80. Country Day returned $3.60 and $3. Wekiva
Wachee paid $9.20.