Dragoon Guard ends stakes drought in Lukas Classic
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Dragoon Guard notched his first stakes win in more than two years while giving jockey Tyler Gaffalione his sixth win Saturday at Churchill when he won the Lukas Classic by 3 1/4 lengths.
Gaffalione, fresh off a win for trainer Brad Cox in the Ack Ack Stakes, won another for Cox in the Grade 2, $500,000 Lukas Classic, where Dragoon Guard sat a great stalking trip behind a speed duel. Pouncing on Chunk of Gold, who’d put away Banishing after fast splits of 22.59 seconds and and 46.64, Dragoon Guard galloped home a 3 1/4-length winner, his first stakes score since the West Virginia Derby on Aug. 4, 2024.
Gaffalione, according to the Churchill communications team, became the 13th jockey with a six-win day at Churchill, and first since Luis Saez did it almost four years ago.
Dragoon Guard ($8.94), a Juddmonte Farms homebred by Arrogate out of the Mizzen Mast mare Filimbi, had two allowance wins from 11 starts since capturing the West Virginia Derby. Cox ran the horse in four straight one-turn miles before Dragoon Guard aired in a two-turn Horseshoe Indianapolis mile, then finished a non-threatening seventh going three turns in the Charles Town Classic.
“He’s enjoyed stretching back out,” Cox said. “He had a big work last weekend and he showed up.”
Chunk of Gold came out running in the 1 1/8-mile Lukas Classic, which scratched down to a five-horse field when McAfee and Original Sin went west to start in the Goodwood at Santa Anita, but Banishing also had designs on the lead, coming through along the inside as the two leaders hooked up on an taxing duel. The pace slowed somewhat on the backside as Dragoon Guard crept closer, Gaffalione playing his hand fairly early and taking the fight to Chunk of Gold around the far turn. Chunk of Gold stayed on decently, but by upper stretch, Dragoon Guard had full command of the race and never was threatened.
Chunk of Gold finished one length ahead of This Is Uscar, who made a solid move past the three-furlong marker that he couldn’t quite sustain. Tiztastic was a well-beaten fourth, Banishing all but eased in last as Dragoon Guard was timed in 1:48.35 over a fast track.
Cox said plans are fluid for Dragoon Guard. Gaffalione should at least have a celebratory Saturday night on his near-term agenda.
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