Flavor becomes stakes winner in Forego

Flavor won for the fourth time in five starts since being claimed for $30,000 and posted his first stakes victory Saturday with a dominant performance in the $50,000 Forego Stakes at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.

With Rex Stokes riding for owner Billy Hays and trainer Joe Woodard, Flavor prevailed by three lengths, returning $3.80 as the heavy favorite in a field of seven older runners. Grand Daddy finished second, 1 1/2 lengths before Godolphin Gray. Golden Country, the 2-1 second choice, ran fifth.

Flavor, a 4-year-old gelding by Elusive Quality, finished 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:17.24 over Polytrack. He was prominent throughout, wresting control from longshot Forestry Gold leaving the turn and never being threatened thereafter.

"We thought we had the best horse," said Woodard. "This was a pretty good deal for us."

Hays and Woodard claimed Flavor at Keeneland in October. The gelding won three times in a row, then was a close-up fourth as the favorite in the Dec. 26 Holiday Cheer, won by Golden Country, before taking the Forego.