Bowies Hero makes Kilroe Mile richest win of career

ARCADIA, Calif. - Jockey Corey Nakatani's patience helped Bowies Hero win his most prestigious race in Saturday’s Grade 1 Frank Kilroe Mile at Santa Anita.

While What a View and Om set a quick pace, Nakatani had Bowies Hero in fifth place for the first half-mile. The strategy left Bowies Hero with plenty of energy to lead by a length with a furlong remaining and hold off a determined closer in Next Shares to win the $401,035 race by a half-length.

“I had a feeling they would go really fast,” Nakatani said. “I had to get him into his rhythm.”

Bowies Hero ($18.60) ran a mile on turf in 1:33.61 to record the richest victory of his career. Bowies Hero earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 103. He has won five stakes, all in one-mile turf races.

Bowies Hero won the Grade 2 Mathis Brothers Mile for 3-year-olds on turf Dec. 26 and was a game second to Om in the Grade 3 Thunder Road Stakes at a mile on turf Feb. 10 in his first start against older horses.

Despite his credentials, Bowies Hero was overlooked in a Kilroe field that included World Approval, the winner of the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Del Mar last November and the 2017 champion turf male.

World Approval was 1-2 to win his fifth consecutive stakes in the Kilroe, but did not perform to expectations. World Approval was fourth on the backstretch, but was no threat to the leaders in the stretch, finishing fifth by about 3 3/4 lengths under jockey Flavien Prat.

Trainer Mark Casse spoke with Prat after the Kilroe and said World Approval did not have an excuse.

“He was flat,” Casse said by phone from Florida.

“All champions can have a bad day, I guess. He’s run so many good races. We like to run and sometimes it doesn’t work out.”

What a View, who won the Kilroe Mile in 2016, set a pace of 22.79 seconds for the opening quarter-mile and 45.46 for a half-mile, closely followed by Om, who won the Grade 3 Thunder Road Stakes at a mile on turf on Feb. 10.

What a View held a one-length lead with a quarter-mile to go. At that point, Nakatani had Bowies Hero three lengths off the pace and found space between runners in early stretch to take the lead.

“That’s what you’re supposed to do,” he said of the ground-saving trip.

“When I had a chance to go, we did.”

Next Shares, who was third in the Thunder Road, closed from sixth in the final quarter-mile to just miss. Ridden by Rajiv Maragh, Next Shares was five-wide entering the stretch.

“It cost him the race,” trainer Richard Baltas said of the wide trip. “I know he was training unbelievably. The other horse got a better trip. Nakatani gave a great ride.”

Channel Maker, a 7-1 shot trained in Florida by Bill Mott, finished third, followed by Syntax, World Approval, Om, What a View, and Free Rose.

Bowies Hero has won 6 of 13 starts and earned $641,325 for Agave Racing Stable, ERJ Racing, and Madaket Stables and trainer Phil D’Amato, who turns 42 on Sunday.