Colorful Tour best in Jim Edgar Illinois Futurity

Colorful Tour, owned and trained by Noel Hickey, edged clear Saturday to a 1 1/4-length victory over even-money favorite Mucho Rapido in the $106,000 Jim Edgar Illinois Futurity at Hawthorne Race Course in Stickney, Ill.

In what evolved into a virtual match race, Mucho Rapido made the first move, taking over for Treasure Run. Then, Colorful Tour, ridden by Roberto Villafan, moved alongside to challenge at the top of the stretch. From there, the pair went head-to-head until Colorful Tour proved best, finishing 1 1/16 miles in 1:46.26 over a sloppy track. He paid $5.40 to win as second choice.

Riverdance Tour, part of a three-ply Hickey entry, finished another 11 lengths back in third in a field of 10 Illinois-bred 2-year-olds.

The win was the third in four starts for Colorful Tour, a son of Hickey's Irish Acres Farm sire, Tour d'Or. The defeat was the first in three starts for Mucho Rapido, trained by Harvey Vanier.

"I really wasn't afraid of the other horse," said Hickey. "He's a nice horse. I just liked mine better."