Alexander dominates John Galbreath Stakes on Best of Ohio card

Prominent Ohio trainer Tim Hamm is in the national spotlight this week as he prepares to saddle his first Breeders’ Cup starter, Grade 1 winner Dayoutoftheoffice, in the Juvenile Fillies. Hamm sent out another good 2-year-old filly on Saturday, as Alexandria rolled to a dominating 6 3/4-length victory in the $100,000 John Galbreath Stakes on the Best of Ohio state showcase program at Mahoning Valley.

The victory by Alexandria was one of the highlights of the five $100,000 stakes on the card, contested on a muddy, sealed track. Elsewhere, Chief Randel delivered a major upset over two state champions, while familiar names Drillit and Forewarned added to their resumes.

Alexandria ($2.20) was bred and is co-owned by Hamm’s Blazing Meadows Farm in partnership with WinStar Farm and Michael Lewis. Hamm and WinStar have a long relationship in the regional Ohio program, campaigning several stakes performers together in recent years.

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"We have a great relationship with WinStar," Hamm said. "We have about 20 yearlings wh will be 2-year-olds next year with WinStar, and we have about a dozen in training. The relationship started about 10 years ago and it's grown each year. We breed together and we do some training together on certain horses."

Alexandria won the Tah Dah Stakes and then the Miss Ohio Stakes earlier this season against statebreds. She shipped to Churchill Downs to finish third, beaten 5 3/4 lengths, in the Grade 3 Pocahontas Stakes. The top two in that race, Girl Daddy and Crazy Beautiful, are bound for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.

Sent away as the heavy favorite in the Galbreath with Gerardo Corrales in the irons, Alexandria stalked the mild pace set by Shez Shacked Up, with a quarter in 24 seconds and the half in 48.30. She took over in the stretch and poured it on to draw clear to her final margin, with the pacesetter holding the runner-up spot. The final time for the 1 1/16 miles was 1:47.83.

Hamm has traveled back and forth from Lexington to Ohio while putting the final touches on Breeders’ Cup contender Dayoutoftheoffice, winner of the Grade 1 Frizette and Grade 2 Schuylerville.

“I have been waiting for two turns all year,” Hamm said. “We would have run in the Alcibiades had the timing been a little bit different. We are looking forward to two turns.”

In the counterpart to the Galbreath, the Juvenile, Buckeye Magic ($9.40) closed to win by 1 3/4 lengths over favored Morestride. The Maccabee Farm homered had John McKee in the irons for trainer Tom Drury Jr.

Chief Randel ($41) rallied from fifth at the quarter pole and held off Mo Dont No by a length in the Best of Ohio Sprint. The latter, a two-time Ohio horse of the year, was trying the Sprint on this program after previously winning the Best of Ohio Endurance three times. Two-time reigning Ohio horse of the year and Sprint winner Altissimo showed speed before fading badly to ninth of 11 as the favorite.

Chief Randel, a Harry Waite homebred, had Fernando Salazar Becerra in the irons for trainer Jose Romero. He won the Daniel Stearns Cleveland Gold Cup earlier this year at Thistledown, and was coming in off a third in the West Virginia Lottery Breeders' Classic.

In a match of the last two winners of the Galbreath, Drillit ($19.40) bested favored Moonlit Mission by 2 1/4 lengths in the Distaff. This was the fifth career stakes win, including the 2018 Galbreath, for Drillit, who had Christian Pilares aboard for Robert Gorham and Mast Thoroughbreds.

There was one more repeat winner to close out the day, as Forewarned ($4) successfully defended his victory in the Marathon, outgaming Wicked Warrior by a half-length under Sonny Leon. Forewarned, Grade 3-placed earlier this year, is trained by Uriah St. Lewis for Trin-Brook Stables.