Aqueduct: Lezcano wins first stakes

JAMAICA, N.Y. - Apprentice Lorenzo Lezcano concluded his first season riding in New York with the first stakes win of his career in the $84,850 Alex M. Robb Handicap at Aqueduct aboard Sweet Ricky, a three-quarter-length winner over Mount Intrepid.

Lezcano is the leading rider at Aqueduct since racing switched to the inner track Dec. 5.

Spectacularspencer, the even-money favorite, finished third in the field of 10 New York-breds.

Sweet Ricky, trained by Alfredo Callejas, came from the back of the pack in the 1 1/16-mile race and circled the field around the final turn. Sweet Ricky, the only 3-year-old in the field, seized the lead from stablemate Duplicitous with a sixteenth remaining.

Sweet Ricky ($9.30) covered the distance in 1:44.30 over a fast track.

Apprentice riders do not receive a weight allowance in New York stakes, so Lezcano did not get his five-pound weight allowance in the Alex M. Robb.

The Alex M. Robb concluded the pick six, which had a hefty pool of $528,605, reflecting a two-day carryover. There were five winning tickets worth $88,362 each. Five of six returned $527.