SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Englishman avenged his only setback and showed a new dimension in the process, rallying from just off the pace to a record-tying and spectacular 5 3/4-length victory over his nemesis Crude Velocity Saturday at Saratoga in the $500,000 Woody Stephens.  Englishman had captured his first two career starts in one-sided fashion before running afoul of Crude Velocity for the first time in the Grade 2 Pat Day Mile at Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby day. He proved no match when engaged by the 3-2 favorite upon settling into the stretch, ultimately finishing nearly four lengths behind the winner although while clearly best of the others in his graded stakes debut.   Trainer Cherie DeVaux, who would go on to upset the Kentucky Derby with Golden Tempo several hours after the Pat Day, said she felt confident her horse could reverse that decision with the pair turning back in distance to seven furlongs for the rematch in the Grade 1 Woody Stephens. And she was right.  With regular rider Jose Ortiz aboard, Englishman shot out of the gate in front before coming to hand and relaxing just off the early pace of Solitude Dude. Englishman engaged the leader midway on the turn, gained command, angled out to the middle of the track exiting the bend then, drew off with complete authority when sharply roused in early stretch. He lugged back in and finished on the rail, while steadily extending his advantage to the wire.  :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. Englishman completed the distance over a very fast track in 1:20.40 (115 Beyer Speed Figure), officially equaling and in all likelihood bettering the existing track record set by Darby Creek Road on Aug. 8, 1978 when races were timed in fifths of a second, not hundredths, as they are today.   Crude Velocity broke a bit awkwardly and was slow to find his best stride, before rushing up to closer contention between horses in the run down the backstretch. Crude Velocity continued his rally to move within easy striking distance of the leaders entering the stretch but could not sustain the bid while holding off Obliteration by a nose to finished second, suffering his first setback in four lifetime outings.   Englishman, a 3-year-old is trained by DeVaux for C R K Stable LLC. He paid $10.56.  DeVaux said she was not surprised at the record-equaling time or to see a performance like this from Englishman in the Woody Stephens.   “He almost broke the track record at the Fair Grounds wrapped up and I feel in the right situation he can go a mile,” said DeVaux. “In his last start, he never really got a chance to breathe and he was able to relax today. That’s what made the difference. I feel the sky is the limit for him right now. But I believe at the moment, that’s at six or seven furlongs.”  Devaux said she was also pleased to see how Englishman adapted when outrun to the lead for the first time in the Woody Stephens.   “We were happy to be outside the horses they said were probably going to be with him, and he’s got such a high cruising speed, I just told Jose if someone else wants to go, let them. Just try to get him to relax outside. Crude Velocity is a very talented horse and I was looking for him to come, but at that distance, I was very confident in Englishman.”    Florent Geroux, who has ridden Crude Velocity in all four of his starts, said his horse was just second best on the day.  “I knew Englishman was the horse to beat at this distance,” Geroux explained. “He has more speed than my horse, the cutback didn’t do him [Crude Velocity] any favors, and the track has been playing very speed favoring all week long. So I’m not surprised. But the speed carried and that was the difference.”  :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.