True North: Trappe Shot finds another gear to leave rivals far behind

In a powerhouse performance, Trappe Shot slipped through on the rail turning for home and drew away to notch his first graded stakes victory in Saturday’s Grade 2, $250,000 True North Handicap. It was the second stakes win on the card for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, who won the Acorn with It’s Tricky a race earlier.

Trappe Shot ($4.60) is susceptible to awkward starts, but broke cleanly under John Velazquez and tracked the pace from close range as Khan of Khans splashed through fractions of 22.79 and 45.43 seconds over a sealed muddy track.

Khan of Khans, the longest shot on the board, gave way readily after being swarmed from both flanks at the quarter pole by Trappe Shot on the rail and This Ones for Phil on the outside.

Trappe Shot quickened through upper stretch and was well clear after five furlongs in 56.91, and then widened to win by 8 1/2 lengths.
“When I squeezed him at the quarter pole he responded,” said Velazquez.

Trappe Shot’s time of 1:08.86 for six furlongs included an explosive last eighth of a mile in 11.95 seconds.

“That’s a wow! – two wows in a row,” said McLaughlin. “He’s a very fast horse and we’ll probably keep him to a mile or under. We’re looking at possibly the Amsterdam [Aug. 1] followed by the Forego [Sept. 3] if that’s what we decide to do. We were pointing for this for so long.”

This Ones for Phil drifted out late but saved the place by a neck over Calibrachoa, who had the same margin on This One for Phil’s entrymate, D’ Funnybone.

Khan of Khans and Wildcat Brief completed the order of finish.