Alliseeisgold handles longer distance in Cleveland Gold Cup
Alliseeisgold, after a pair of dominating performances in six-furlong sprints, easily handled the transition to 1 1/8 miles to capture Saturday’s 48th running of the $75,000 Cleveland Gold Cup for Ohio-bred 3-year-olds at ThistleDown.
Jockey Mario Pino, who has been aboard for all three of Alliseeisgold’s most recent victories, sent the son of Purge to the front and he clicked off fractions of 49.26 seconds and 1:14.42 while maintaining a comfortable two-length lead. Alliseeisgold ($2.80), the heavy favorite in a field reduced to seven by two scratches, opened up by five lengths coming into the stretch and increased his margin to 6 3/4 lengths at the finish. The winning time for the longest race of the season at the suburban Cleveland track was 1:52.28.
Sunshine’s Son Bob outfinished recent maiden winner Signal Ridge by a neck for second.
It was the sixth win in 13 starts locally this season for Sharon Ruberto, who trains Alliseeisgold for Beachwood Racing Stable and Capeh Equine. Alliseeisgold, who won his maiden in his second career start in late April, is now 4 for 6 lifetime with earnings of $119,850.