Golden Gate: Vaderator hangs on

Vaderator ($8.20), outrunning Set Alight and Trickey Trevor early, opened up in the lane and had just enough left to hold off fast-finishing Britt's Jules by a nose, winning his stakes debut in the $59,350 Fairfax Stakes at Golden Gate Fields.

Trickey Trevor popped the gate in the six-furlong race, but Vaderator quickly grabbed the lead before the five-eighths pole while pressured by Set Alight. He got some breathing room on the turn and was in front by two in the lane. Vaderator was able to barely hold off the favored Britt's Jules, winning the race in 1:08.71. Trickey Trevor finished third.

"I just tried to be patient with him," winning rider Frank Alvarado said. "I just sat till the three-sixteenths pole. I knew I had him [Britt's Jules] one jump before the wire, but he was flying."

Jockey Kyle Kaenel, who rode Britt's Jules, said, "When you get beat a nose like that you wonder if there's anything you could have done different. Maybe if we could have got out a little sooner, it would have been different."

Winning trainer Dean Pederson was happy with the victory.

"If the first three ran 10 times, they'd win three each with luck deciding who'd get the fourth," he said. "This horse is so naturally fast, and he likes to get involved. We're trying to teach him to relax."

All four of Vaderator's rivals were stakes winners. Vaderator has now won 4 of 7 starts and $121,235.