Deterministic takes Hill Prince, ends campaign on high note

Deterministic capped off a stellar 3-year-old campaign the way it began, with a Grade 3 stakes win, after parlaying a perfectly orchestrated trip by Joel Rosario into a popular one-length victory over Cugino on Saturday at Aqueduct in the $200,000 Hill Prince.

Deterministic began the year with a two-length triumph over a sloppy main track in the Grade 3 Gotham, briefly putting himself on the Kentucky Derby trail until an eighth-place finish as the odds-on favorite in the Grade 2 Wood derailed those dreams five weeks later. Following another disappointing performance on dirt in the Peter Pan, trainer Christophe Clement made the decision to switch Deterministic to the turf, a surface over which he has excelled during the second half of the season.

Turning back in distance off a second-place finish in the 11-furlong Jockey Club Derby Invitational, Deterministic raced within easy striking distance of the pacesetting Bartlett while saving ground for the opening six furlongs of the 1 1/16-mile Hill Prince. Rosario tipped Deterministic out to commence his bid upon settling into the stretch, the two readily wearing down the weary leader nearing the furlong marker, quickly drawing well clear before holding safe a belated bid from Cugino. The latter also saved ground while racing at the rear of the pack into the stretch, angled out to the middle of the track while gaining momentum in early stretch, and finishing with good energy to easily be second-best.

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Royal Majesty moved to close contention upon settling into the stretch, but could not sustain the bid, finishing third while followed in order by Right to Vote, the tiring Bartlett, Desvio and Main Beach.

Deterministic, a son of Liam’s Map, covered the distance over a firm course in 1:46.58 seconds and paid $5.50, his first-place check of $110,000 swelling his 2024 earnings to $828,640.

“He’s never run a bad race on the turf. He’s a fun horse. He’s won three graded stakes and it’s not easy to win three graded stakes in the same year,” Clement said. “I thought he won great. When Joel [Rosario] asked him, he really quickened.”

Clement said Deterministic will likely get a break over the winter before embarking on his 4-year-old campaign next spring in New York.

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