Nun the Less repeats in Kentucky Cup Classic

Nun the Less became the first two-time winner of the $150,000 Kentucky Cup Classic on Saturday at Turfway Park, powering clear to an authoritative 4 1/2-length victory in the Florence, Ky., track's signature event for older horses.

This was the 20th running of the Kentucky Cup Classic, which was revived in 2018 after going on hiatus following its 2011 running. The race has been shifted to an early-season spot after previously holding a fall date on the calendar. Regardless of the dates of his race, Nun the Less is unbeaten at Turfway Park, all in stakes races. The 8-year-old Candy Ride gelding won the Prairie Bayou Stakes in December 2018, the Kentucky Cup Classic last March, and the Forego Stakes in January. Overall, Nun the Less, who was making his third start off an eight-month layoff for trainer Cipriano Contreras, has now won 10 of 35 career starts for earnings of $638,038.

Nun the Less ($12.80), with Rodney Prescott in the irons, was unhurried early as he broke from post 3 in a bulky field of 12. The gelding sat in eighth after a half-mile as Lanier, runner-up in last year's Kentucky Cup Classic, was loose on the lead through tepid early fractions. Nun the Less advanced to fifth leaving the backstretch and continued to make up ground around the far turn as Lanier attempted to shake away, opening his lead to 2 1/2 lengths. But Nun the Less had his momentum going four wide and quickly reeled in the leader, striking the lead in upper stretch and continuing to power clear to his final margin.

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Nun the Less stopped the clock in 1:48.80 for the 1 1/8 miles on Polytrack, just missing the track mark of 1:48.29 established by Ball Four while winning this same race in September 2006.

"The horse has been doing great since he came back off the layoff," said Prescott, who has partnered with Nun the Less in his last five races, including graded stakes placings in Kentucky and Illinois. "Cipriano has done a great job with him. He took his time bringing him back. The horse couldn’t be doing any better. He does like this track and he had a great trip. I couldn’t have asked for anything better today. He broke real sharp. I had to take him back a little bit. We were a little wide, which doesn’t hurt you here. We had a good trip with plenty of horse to finish with."

The Kentucky Cup Classic featured the past two winners of the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby Steaks, Turfway's Kentucky Derby points race, in Somelikeithotbrown (2019) and Blended Citizen (2018).

Somelikeithotbrown, sent away as the favorite in his return to stakes company in his third start off a nine-month layoff, rallied from sixth after six furlongs to be second, holding off Signalman's rally by a head.

Signalman, who was a Grade 2 winner and multiple Grade 1-placed as a 2-year-old in 2019 and third in the Grade 2 Blue Grass Stakes last year, was making his first start since June.

"He ran great," trainer Ken McPeek said of Signalman. "He was hung eight wide, but he closed nice. He’s going to have a big year. We’ll shoot for an allowance race at Keeneland."

Blended Citizen was another 1 1/2 lengths back in fourth.

After the top four came Space Mountain, the fading Lanier, Peekacho, Dragon Bay, Royal Mesa, Lo's Journey, Moon Over Montana, and Flying Scotsman.

The Kentucky Cup Classic was one of four stakes that supported the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby Steaks, and Turfway’s Kentucky Oaks prep, the Bourbonette Oaks. In other stakes action on the card.

Rouge Too continues streak in Latonia

Rogue Too kept rolling, posting her sixth consecutive victory in the $100,000 Latonia Stakes for fillies and mares.

Rogue Too ($8.40), sent away as the favorite, led throughout under Rogelio Miranda. She began widening her advantage around the far turn and continued to power along in the lane, winning by 5 3/4 lengths and finishing the mile in 1:36.94. Speedy Solution was second, four lengths clear of Harmless.

After winning a claiming race in October at Indiana Grand for trainer Doug Danner, Rogue Too shifted her game to Turfway and won four consecutive allowance or optional-claiming races at the track before the Latonia.

"She’s doing as good as a horse can be doing," Danner said. "She’s stabled here all winter, and she has dapples the size of silver dollars."

Vanzzy leads all the way in Rushaway

Vanzzy put a strange performance in his prior outing firmly behind him as he earned a front-running 4 1/4-length score in the $100,000 Rushaway Stakes for 3-year-olds.

Vanzzy, who had Kendrick Carmouche in the irons for trainer Mike Pino, won the Display Stakes in December at Woodbine. However, in his next outing, the Grade 3 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct, the colt appeared to tire and essentially pulled himself up, was eased, and walked off under his own power. He fired three bullet works at his Parx Racing base to signal his readiness for his return to the races.

"I don’t know what happened” in the Withers, Pino said. "The horse came back good and was training good. There wasn’t a lot of speed in here, so we sent him from there, and it worked out."

Behind Vanzzy, Blanket of Roses rallied to edge Something Natural by a neck for second. The final time for the 1 1/16 miles was 1:43.89.

Bango draws away in Animal Kingdom Stakes

The time was disputed, but there was no doubt about Bango's 2 1/2-length victory in the $75,000 Animal Kingdom Stakes for 3-year-old sprinters.

Bango ($14.60) surged past pacesetter My Man Flintstone and drew clear in the lane under Rafael Bejarano, with Turfway originally announcing his time as a track-record 1:14.99 for the 6 1/2 furlongs on the Polytrack. However, after hand-timing the race twice, Equibase chart callers listed the time was 1:16.50 in the official chart.

My Man Flintstone held second by a head over favored Merchants of Cool, who broke awkwardly.
Bango, trained by Greg Foley, won for the third time in seven career starts. The Congrats colt was coming off a ninth-place finish in the Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes in January at Fair Grounds.