Great Stuff upsets Toboggan for first stakes win

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Great Stuff took advantage of a hotly contested pace and a heady ride by Dylan Davis to post an 11-1 upset in Saturday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Toboggan Stakes at Aqueduct.

With 1-2 favorite Takaful being pressed hard by 2017 Toboggan winner Green Gratto through a half-mile in 45.15 seconds, Davis had Great Stuff in fifth, about seven lengths back, while saving ground down the backstretch.

Leaving the three-eighths pole, Davis began to tip Great Stuff outside into the clear. Great Stuff was five wide straightening out in the lane, but he was gaining with every stride, took over from Takaful inside the eighth pole, and drew clear to win by 2 1/2 lengths. Vulcan’s Forge, way out of it while last early under Junior Alvarado, rallied to get second by a half-length over Takaful. Life in Shambles, Summer Revolution, and Green Gratto completed the order of finish.

Great Stuff a, 6-year-old son of Quality Road trained by David Jacobson for Bruce Golden, won for the seventh time in 26 starts. It was his first stakes victory after having run fifth in the Grade 3 Fall Highweight in October, fourth in the Gravesend in December, and third in the Dave’s Friend at Laurel on Jan. 8.

“I loved my chances today,” said Doug Jacobson, who saddled the horse for his brother David. “I don’t care about the odds. I said this horse fits this race, he’s doing good, we’ve got Dylan Davis the hottest rider around; we’re due to win a big race like this.”

Davis rode Great Stuff in the Gravesend where he finished fourth, beaten three-quarters of a length by Do Share. Davis felt he had the horse too far out of it early.

Saturday, Davis kept Great Stuff a little closer, but he said the key was saving ground for the first half of the race.

“My plan was not to get too far out of it and ride the rail as long as I could,” Davis said. “When he turned for home he had a lot of momentum, he just was very determined to get it done. … I saved all the ground on the whole turn. Once I angled him out and got him in the clear, he knows what he’s got to do.”

Great Stuff, sent off the second-longest shot on the board at 11-1, returned $25.80 to win. He ran seven furlongs in 1:23.15.

Takaful, last year’s Grade 1 Vosburgh winner, was making his first start since finishing last in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint last Nov. 4. Under Trevor McCarthy, he dueled inside of Green Gratto, put that one away above the eighth pole, but was overtaken by the two closers late.

“Definitely not the trip we wanted,” McCarthy said. “He broke in front, I tried to take him back a little bit, he wasn’t wanting to do that today and Green Gratto he never gave me a break.”