Cellist holds off longshot Reigning Spirit to win Louisville Stakes
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Cellist played a winning tune Saturday, holding off a hard-charging Reigning Spirit in the 85th running of the Grade 3, $199,777 Louisville Stakes at Churchill Downs.
Ridden by Julien Leparoux, Cellist looped into contention on the last of three turns in the 1 1/2-mile turf race. Cellist grabbed a tenuous lead at the furlong grounds, then was all out to prevail by a head over Reigning Spirit.
Cellist, a 4-year-old Calumet Farm homebred, returned $13.60 as co-second choice in a full gate of 14 older horses. He finished in 2:32.12 over a course rated good.
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“He was a very good 3-year-old last year, ran in some really tough races,” said Cellist’s trainer, Rusty Arnold. “We think a mile and a half is what he wants to do.”
Cellist, a bay gelding by Big Blue Kitten, now has won three of 10 starts, with one of his prior scores coming here last May over the old turf course in the Audubon Stakes.
Reigning Spirit, a 62-1 shot under Colby Hernandez, finished 1 1/4 lengths before Highest Honors, who got third in a tight four-way scramble also involving Cibolian (fourth), Bama Breeze (fifth), and Shamrocket (sixth). Camp Hope, the 9-2 favorite in a wide-open betting race, was seventh, while Celerity was the only scratch as the lone also-eligible.
The triumph was the fifth in the last three racing days for a red-hot Arnold, who won with all three of his starters here Friday. Arnold also ran fifth-place finisher Bama Breeze in the Louisville.
The $2 exacta (13-14) paid $543.60, the $1 trifecta (13-14-12) returned $2,410, and the 10-cent superfecta (13-14-12-4) was worth $3,849.88.
The Louisville, which was carded as the last of 11 Saturday races, had been a handicap since it was first run in 1895 before Churchill eliminated all such races starting in 2019. All starters were assigned 118 pounds under allowance conditions except Another Mystery (120).
The Louisville was run about an hour after heavy rain and strong winds pounded the area for about 15 minutes, turning the main track from fast to sloppy and the turf from firm to good.
In the preceding race, a second-level allowance for 3-year-olds going 1 1/16 miles, Howling Time ($12.20) splashed home a five-length winner when going wire-to-wire under Joe Talamo, marking the first victory for the Dale Romans-trained colt since the Street Sense last fall. Rattle N Roll was second as the 4-5 favorite.