Code of Honor gets win in Jockey Club Gold Cup upon DQ of Vino Rosso

ELMONT, N.Y. – Another major race ended in a controversial stewards’ decision Saturday as Vino Rosso was disqualified from first and second-place finisher Code of Honor was declared the winner of the Grade 1, $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park.

While the result is official as far as the betting public is concerned, the connections of Vino Rosso told the New York stewards they plan to file an appeal of the decision with the New York State Gaming Commission.

Braulio Baeza Jr., who currently serves as the New York Racing Association steward, said Todd Pletcher, the trainer of Vino Rosso, “indicated he is probably going to appeal the race.”

Pletcher declined to speak to reporters after the race.

In a bit of irony, John Velazquez, the rider of Code of Honor, had ridden Vino Rosso in all 13 of that horse’s previous starts. That included a victory in the 2018 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct when Vino Rosso bumped Enticed in upper stretch and, despite an objection lodged then, was not disqualified.

Velazquez has also been the regular rider of Code of Honor, on whom he won the Grade 1 Travers at Saratoga in August. Velazquez rode Code of Honor in the Kentucky Derby when he finished third but was placed second when the Churchill Downs stewards disqualified Maximum Security from first and placed him 17th.

In the Gold Cup, Vino Rosso, under Irad Ortiz Jr., set the pace, getting some token pressure from Tacitus. Code of Honor, fourth early, rallied three wide into the lane. At the three-sixteenths pole, Tacitus began to fade and Code of Honor was moving as if he was going to go right on by Vino Rosso. Ortiz went to a left-handed whip and came out a path or two while Code of Honor, came in a path. The two brushed once, and then a second time, but neither rider stopped riding their horse. In the last 70 yards, the two horses were going at the same pace with Vino Rosso maintaining a nose advantage to the wire.

A stewards’ inquiry was posted and it was announced that Velazquez had lodged a claim of foul. After several minutes, it was announced there was a disqualification.

The three stewards – Carmine Donofrio (Gaming Commission), Jennifer Durenberger (Jockey Club), and Baeza – met with reporters after the last race was run to explain their decision.

“Coming down the stretch, Mr. Ortiz was striking his horse left handed, the horse drifted out making contact, pushing the other horse out a path or two,” Baeza said. “The other horse does, in our opinion, come back and just get beat a nose.

“We felt it was enough to disqualify,” Baeza added. “If the riders kept their horses straight we wouldn’t be here but he drifts out, makes contact, not just once, under a left-handed crop, pushes the horse out and [Code of Honor] got beat by a nose.”

Velazquez felt he was going to go on by Vino Rosso before the contact was made.

“He came out and bumped my horse, I had put my head in front of him and he bumped him and got my horse off balance,” Velazquez said. “The second time he bumped him, now he puts a head in front of me. I’m trying to get back in front of him and he just beat me by a nose. It was enough to get beat.”

Ortiz said the two horses brushed but never bumped.

“I think the best horse won today,” Ortiz said. “We get close, we get together, [Code of Honor] put his head in front, my horse fight back. I think he deserved the race.”

It was four lengths back to Tacitus in third. Preservationist was a length back in fourth. Olympic Village was last.

The final time for 1 1/4 miles in the Jockey Club Gold Cup was 2:00.30. Code of Honor, the second choice at 2-1, returned $6.

By virtue of the stewards’ decision, Code of Honor now has a second Grade 1 victory to go along with his victory in last month’s Travers Stakes at Saratoga. He has as many Grade 1 wins as Maximum Security, who beat Code of Honor in the Florida Derby and who finished ahead of him in the Kentucky Derby before the disqualification.

The result earned Code of Honor a fees-paid berth to the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita on Nov. 2. Owner Will Farish said he and trainer Shug McGaughey likely won’t make a decision on the Breeders’ Cup for at least a week.

“We’ll just have to see, he’s had a tough campaign now,” Farish said. “If he comes out of the race well … we’ll take a good week to make that decision.”

The win was the fourth graded stakes in two days for Velazquez, who on Friday surpassed Jerry Bailey for the most career graded stakes victories. He now has 664.

McGaughey credited Velazquez’s experience with playing a key role in Code of Honor’s performance.

“When it comes to a five-horse race I think we saw today it’s a rider’s race,” said McGaughey, who won his fourth Jockey Club Gold Cup. “He had to go and put some pressure on Vino Rosso maybe a little earlier than he wanted to but that’s why he is who he is. I can’t take my hat off to him enough.”