Chasing Liberty gets Juvenile Sprint win after stewards DQ Under Who's Radar to second

No one wants a $1 million race to fall into the hands of the stewards, but that is what happened Sunday at Kentucky Downs in the Juvenile Sprint, in which Under Who's Radar was disqualified from first to second and runner-up Chasing Liberty placed first after stewards disqualified the first horse under the wire.

Under Who's Radar, prominent throughout, led through much of the long Kentucky Downs homestretch, but when he came to the course’s final little dogleg about a furlong from the finish, where the rail bends left, he came out several paths under Jose Ortiz’s left-handed crop. Chasing Liberty was making a sustained run, closing on the leader, whose actions forced jockey Florent Geroux to check his mount to avoid contact. Ortiz did correct Under Who's Radar, but Chasing Liberty came again late to narrow the margin to three-quarters of a length.

The inquiry sign never was lit, but Geroux claimed foul, and after a period of deliberation, stewards took the winning number down.

“I had to take a strong hold,” Geroux said. “It’s hard to tell if I’d have beaten him or not. It was very close. At the time I was gaining a lot of momentum. I had to claim foul. In my opinion it was the right call.”

Under Who's Radar’s connections surely saw things differently, focusing on Ortiz’s corrective action and the fact Chasing Liberty regained stride and was unable to pass.

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Making his second start for trainer Rob Atras and owner Twin Creek Racing, Chasing Liberty was coming off a modest Ellis Park debut turf-sprint maiden win and went off at 22-1, paying $46.76. That he even reached contention after a difficult trip was somewhat remarkable.

Chasing Liberty showed speed, but was caught four wide into the turn of this 6 1/2-furlong sprint. He wound up in a chasing pack, stuck between horses, but sucked out of that spot midway around the far turn, forcing Geroux to stoke up his mount eight or nine paths from the fence as the field turned for home.

Chasing Liberty pinned his ears, came resolutely forward, and appeared to be on his way to a victory; he eventually was rewarded when the incident took place.

Reach for the Rose finished third, 1 3/4 lengths out of second. Favored Pharoah’s Dynasty broke awkwardly, threw his head shortly after the start, chased the pace and faded badly. Strong second-choice Black Forza made a contending move into the stretch, but flattened out and finished fourth.

Chasing Liberty was timed in 1:15.65 over a firm course, the temporary rail set at 25 feet. The race had a total value of $897,500.

A homebred, Chasing Liberty is by Constitution out of Peaceful, by Declaration of War. Maybe he was best, maybe he was not, but he was adjudged the winner of the Juvenile Sprint on Sunday at Kentucky Downs.

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