Officiating pulls away from odds-on Chateau in Tom Fool Handicap
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Two starts after upsetting the Grade 3 Mr. Prospector Stakes at Gulfstream Park in December, Officiating pulled off another mild surprise Saturday, running by odds-on favorite Chateau at the sixteenth pole and drawing away to a 5 1/2-length victory in Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Tom Fool Handicap at Aqueduct.
Chateau, last year’s Tom Fool winner and this year’s 1-2 favorite, finished second, 1 1/4 lengths in front of a slow-starting Repo Rocks. Prime Factor and Timeless Bounty completed the order of finish.
The win was the fourth from 16 starts for Officiating, a 4-year-old son of Blame owned and bred by Peter Vegso and trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. It was Officiating’s first start at six furlongs as he was cutting back from a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Fred Hooper at a mile.
“To see him cut back to six furlongs and win the way he won, it looks like six and seven is going to be his best distance,” Joseph said. “I thought maybe he could get the mile, but he got to those horses pretty good [in the Hooper] and flattened out.”
Saturday, jockey Manny Franco had Officiating just 1 1/2 lengths off the early pace established by Chateau, who, under Kendrick Carmouche, ran an opening quarter in 22.66 seconds while opening up a length lead over Prime Factor.
Franco started riding Officiating entering the far turn and moved into second approaching the five-sixteenths pole. Chateau still had a clear advantage in upper stretch, but when Franco went to his crop, Officiating responded and ran past Chateau at the sixteenth pole.
“I know he wasn’t going to take me, I had to ride him,” Franco said. “As soon as I started riding him, he gave it to me. I was hoping [Chateau] would come back to me, but as soon as we hit the stretch and I hit him he took off.”
Officiating covered the six furlongs in 1:12.22 and returned $13.40 as the fourth choice in the five-horse field. Officiating earned a 95 Beyer Speed Figure.
Joseph, who has his stable based in Florida, said Officiating would return to Florida on Sunday but that he could come back to New York for the Grade 1 Carter Handicap here on April 9. Joseph won last year’s Carter with Mischievious Alex.
Chateau was the heavy favorite due to his prior success at Aqueduct and his seeming pace advantage, but he offered little resistance when Officiating came to him.
“The track was a little heavier than he probably would have liked, but he still ran his race," Carmouche said.