Jimmy P soars to 34 1/2-length win in Jonathan Sheppard
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. -- Jimmy P took the lead over the ninth and final fence of Wednesday’s $150,000 Jonathan Sheppard Steeplechase at Saratoga then put on a show over the final half-mile run over the flat to record a 34 1/2-length victory in the Grade 1 event.
“I did think he’d win today,” said trainer Keri Brion, who also sent out the runner-up Going Country. “I did not think he would win like that.”
His form didn’t suggest Jimmy P would win like that. His last victory came in a handicap race at Percy Warner in May 2023 though he did finish a solid second in this race last year before finishing fifth in the Grade 1 Grand National at Far Hills.
This year, Jimmy P was last in the Grade 1 Iroquois before running fourth in the Beverly Steinman at Aqueduct in June.
Brion blamed herself for Jimmy P’s effort in the Steinman.
“I didn’t train him right into that. He was not fit enough for it,” Brion said. “I probably did him a disservice, I should have trained him harder.”
Brion had Jimmy P on point for the Sheppard, named after the Hall of Fame trainer who won the New York Turf Writers’ Cup -- the previous moniker of this race -- 15 times. Brion finished 1-2-3 in this race in 2021, the first year it was named for Sheppard.
Jimmy P, under Stephen Mulqueen, raced up close to the pace established by Pickanumber and Jamie Bargary. Approaching the final fence, Mulqueen guided Jimmy P outside of Pickanumber. Once he cleared the final fence, Jimmy P left his competition under Mulqueen.
“All he does is keep galloping,” Mulqueen said. “If he was in Ireland, he’d be running over three miles, so stamina is not a problem for him. I knew when I jumped the last, he’d pick up. I thought he maybe pulled a couple of lengths clear. I was afraid to look behind me because I thought I could hear someone. I had a glance at the screen and he was miles clear, wasn’t he?”
Jimmy P, a 6-year-old gelding by Slumber owned by Madaket Stables and Molly and Paul Willis, covered the 2 3/8 miles in 4:31.64 and returned $14.
Going Country, at 18-1 the second-longest shot on the board, finished second by 9 1/2 lengths over Abaan, who was kind of left behind at the start. Artistic Choice, Pickanumber, Too Friendly, and Kiyomori completed the order of finish. Zarak the Brave, the 158-pound highweight and race favorite, fell over the second fence. The horse as well as jockey Graham Watters were reported to be okay.
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