Blessed Flyer ($65.82) catches He Is No Lie, upsets Bashford Manor
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In a flying finish, Blessed Flyer was up by a head at the wire for a $65.82 upset in the 125th running of the $225,000 Bashford Manor, one of two stakes for 2-year-olds on Sunday's closing day of the spring-summer meet at Churchill Downs.
The win capped a stellar weekend for trainer Mike Tomlinson, who the day prior had saddled Harrodsburg to win the Grade 3 Bango Stakes. Blessed Flyer, by Dialed In, won his debut April 16 at Keeneland for owner DNG Blessed Stable and trainer Michel Douaihy. He was subsequently entered in Fasig-Tipton's May digital auction, and was purchased for $270,000 by Tomlinson on behalf of Mark Farrar and Patricia's Hope.
Brian Hernandez Jr., who picked up the mount on Blessed Flyer for the Bashford Manor, worked the colt in preparation for the race at Churchill Downs. Hernandez said he was impressed by the smooth half-mile work, and even more impressed by the gallop out.
"The morning he worked him, he came back with a big smile on his face," Tomlinson recalled. "He said, this colt is gonna love three quarters. I think he's gonna love even more down the road."
Armed with that confidence, Hernandez was unhurried early on Blessed Flyer, who broke out from the outside post in the field of eight, and wound up fifth through the opening quarter. Up front, He Is No Lie, shipping in off an impressive debut win in California, caught a flyer out of the gate for the early lead, but was quickly joined by prominent Churchill debut winner Hey Tuff Guy, who pressed him on the outside through the opening quarter in 22.10 seconds on a track rated fast after drying out from Saturday's sloppy program.
He Is No Lie continued to lead Hey Tuff Guy through the half in 44.69 seconds, with those two five lengths clear of the rest of the field - though Blessed Flyer had moved up to third under his own power. Hey Tuff Guy could not stay on after the sharp fractions and quickly exited the stage in upper stretch, with He Is No Lie bounding clear to a four-length lead. But in the final sixteenth, Blessed Flyer found his best stride and ate into the margin with every jump to flash under the wire alongside the leader.
The time for the six furlongs was 1:09.98.
"These 2-year-olds start to stretch out to three-quarters like that, some tend to come back a little," Hernandez said. "But he just traveled so smooth the whole way around there ... I thought when I uncorked him, he'd be ready to make a run."
After the top two, it was three lengths back to Captain Luke, followed by Sargent Bilko, the favored Hey Tuff Guy, Tolstoy, Call Me Micky J., and Tigrado.
The sister race, the $225,000 Debutante, was won by favored Pierette ($7.06), who remained unbeaten in two career starts for Tracy Farmer and trainer Mark Casse.
Pierette and Jose Ortiz were third after the opening half of 45.57, 1 1/2 lengths behind Epic Reign, who had her head in front on the inside of a pressing Lack of Riesling. Epic Reign shook clear by two lengths in the stretch, but Pierette drove by in the final stages for the win.
The time for the six furlongs was 1:10.71.
Epic Reign easily held second by 5 3/4 lengths over Lack of Riesling. Valkyrie, Free Closer, The Stork Club, Liberty Rings, and True Blessing rounded out the order.
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