OZONE PARK, N.Y. – In a vintage effort at Aqueduct on Saturday, Bold Journey didn’t play the part of a 7-year-old gelding, winless in 13 starts since the start of 2024. Determined under Eric Cancel, the unlucky old-timer finally proved undeniable again, flying late to win the Grade 3 Tom Fool Stakes in a scrambling photo finish. "He's a really cool horse,” Cancel said. “He always comes 100 percent ready to run. He's already seven years old. It is tough for a lot of horses to keep it going at his age, but he still has it in him. As long as he keeps giving it to you, he's going to be here." First riding together more than three years ago, Cancel and Bold Journey have had their fair share of fast finishes. Since a commanding win in the 2023 running of the Gravesend, however, all of those finishes have come up short. After 33 starts together, trainer Bill Mott sees it in a different light.  “He’s a tough old campaigner,” Mott said. “He always hits the board.” :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. It would be slightly unfair to claim that Bold Journey is past his prime as a 7-year-old, despite his lengthy losing streak entering the Tom Fool. Last September, the gelding came up a neck short in the Grade 3 Belmont Turf Sprint, earning a 96 Beyer Speed Figure. In the past year, he has finished second five times. Maybe the hunt for his second graded stakes victory was always a matter of finding the right field. But even in a five-horse running of the Tom Fool Saturday, bettors seemed to doubt Bold Journey’s chances after two recent defeats in allowances. He paid $23.34 to win. One Nine Hundred, a commanding allowance winner for Tom Morley on Jan. 9, seemed keen on living up to his 2-5 odds in the Tom Fool early on. Longshot Breslau led the race through an opening quarter-mile in 22.40 seconds, but it didn’t take long for him to cave to his stronger rival. Morley’s heavy favorite launched into the lead on the far turn, completing the half-mile in 45.52 and taking a 1 1/2-length advantage into the stretch. The race complexion changed in an instant, however, when the Michelle Nevin-trained gelding Full Moon Madness advanced into second and began making up ground on the leader. While Full Moon Madness challenged One Nine Hundred, depleting the last of his reserves in midstretch, Bold Journey was still working his way into contention. Eight lengths behind on the backstretch, he was four lengths back and flying when One Nine Hundred hit the top of the stretch. “I tried to engage him a little bit to try to stay as close as I could,” Cancel said. “He did his job today. He was able to get really comfortable. By the three-eighths [pole], he started picking it up little by little. Once we turned for home, I still had some horse, and he gave his all out there." In the final furlong, the three contenders compressed in accordion-like fashion, with Bold Journey making up ground on Full Moon Madness while One Nine Hundred faded back to his two charging challengers. If the race had three wires over 150 yards, it would have had three winners. Instead, Cancel’s timing proved to be perfect in the six-furlong sprint. In an instant, the lead changed from One Nine Hundred to Full Moon Madness to Bold Journey, who prevailed by a nose and completed the distance in 1:10.70. “That’s how that rider rides him. He lets him just make that one run and he runs as good for him as he does for anybody,” Mott said. :: Get the Inside Track with the FREE DRF Morning Line Email Newsletter. Subscribe now.  One Nine Hundred, desperate for the wire and left wanting, finished three-quarters of a length behind Full Moon Madness in third. With his graded stakes victory on Saturday, his first since winning the Grade 3 Fall Highweight Handicap in November 2023, Bold Journey is now less than $3,000 short of becoming a millionaire. He stands at $997,253 in career earnings after taking his share of the Tom Fool’s $175,000 purse. Stymie Stakes  The longest shot told the story in a three-horse running of the $150,000 Stymie Stakes on Saturday, as Komorebino Omoide put away heavy favorite Phileas Fogg and repelled Yo Daddy to win by a length. Komorebino Omoide's first start for Rob Atras was straightforward, which the trainer sees as a just reward for his new trainee. “He's just a racehorse,” Atras said. “You don't see too many like that anymore. Usually they have a niche where they like a mile or turf. With him, he just shows up, whatever you throw at him. He's a cool horse, and as game as he was after setting those fast fractions, was pretty impressive." Stuck between the Stymie and Grade 3 Gulfstream Mile for Komorebino Omoide’s 6-year-old debut Saturday, Atras ultimately chose the Stymie in order to avoid the Bill Mott-trained Knightsbridge. The heavy favorite won the Florida race by 11 1/4 lengths shortly before Komorebino Omoide scored at Aqueduct. “I thought this was the right spot and I'm glad we made the right move,” Atras said. “Sometimes you do.” With 8-5 morning-line second choice Full Screen scratching from the Stymie, along with longshots Ridgewood Runner and Counterspy, the complexion of the race obviously changed. Even against just two rivals, however, Komorebino Omoide remained relatively cold on the tote board, paying $8.26 as the third choice in the field. The quality of his win may be diminished by the lack of competition, but jockey Ramon Vazquez had his work cut out for him on the front end when 1-2 favorite Phileas Fogg hustled forward to challenge Komorebino Omoide for the early lead. The pair traveled in tandem through an opening quarter-mile in 22.49 seconds and remained deadlocked through a half-mile in 45.03. :: Subscribe to the DRF Post Time Email Newsletter: Get the news you need to play today's races!  “I just didn't want to let [Phileas Fogg] go too easy and just save my horse for the other horse coming from behind,” Vazquez said. “I had to be careful. Sometimes, with three horses, it can be so difficult."  When the Japanese-bred put a head in front of Phileas Fogg entering the far turn, it didn’t seem like a lasting advantage. But in an instant, Phileas Fogg was fading fast, backing out of contention to a 25-length defeat. Trainer Gustavo Rodriguez, hopeful for a strong effort to kick off 2026, was left with the worst defeat of the graded stakes winner’s career.  Vazquez urged Komorebino Omoide forward turning for home, but Yo Daddy and Jose Lezcano were surging after trailing by five lengths early on. It looked like a textbook setup for the Linda Rice-trained horse, but when it came time for him to move past, Komorebino Omoide denied him, refusing to yield the front. Stubborn to the wire, he completed the mile in 1:38.27.  “These are nice horses and he really ran a good race today,” Atras said. “It may have an asterisk because it's only three horses, but those were good horses and he ran a big race. He was game."  In his 23 prior starts, mostly spent with trainer Robertino Diodoro, Komorebino Omoide earned six victories between six furlongs and 1 1/16 miles. The Stymie was his first victory since last May, when he won the Grade 3 Steve Sexton Mile at Lone Star Park. He has also run well on turf in limited appearances.   Atras praised Komorebino Omoide's versatility, but it also leaves the trainer with more decisions for the horse. Atras mentioned the Grade 2 Carter at seven furlongs as a potential next start, but there are many more to consider.  - additional reporting by David Grening  :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.