HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Proxy was a dramatic winner of the Grade 2, $1 million Oaklawn Handicap on Saturday, when he re-rallied to capture the 1 1/8 miles race in a three-way photo over Last Samurai and Stilleto Boy. “I need oxygen right now,” quipped winning trainer Michael Stidham. Proxy won by a head over highweight Last Samurai, while it was another nose back in third to Stilleto Boy. Joel Rosario rode Proxy to sweep the three stakes on the card Saturday, as he also accounted for the $200,000 Bath House Row with Red Route One and the $150,000 Valley of the Vapors with Merlazza. Rosario also won his second $1 million race in a week at Oaklawn as last Saturday he accounted for the Apple Blossom Handicap aboard Clairiere. :: Take your handicapping to the next level and play with FREE DRF Past Performances - Formulator or Classic.  The stakes are all part of the Racing Festival of the South, when Oaklawn features a number of major stakes throughout the month of April. Proxy ($9.40) settled in fifth in the seven-horse Oaklawn Handicap, racing well off the rail as Stilleto Boy and Classic Causeway went out together on the lead through an opening quarter in 23.23 seconds, a half-mile in 47.64 and six furlongs in 1:12.56. Proxy started to advance four wide on the final turn but dropped back, came six wide into the stretch, then got into gear again to get up at the wire. Proxy covered the distance on a fast track in 1:49.68. “The three-eighths to the quarter pole, he starts dropping back and I thought we were in trouble,” Stidham said. “But two things Rosario knows about him. He doesn’t like a lot of whip and he doesn’t like dirt in his face. He had him in the middle of the track. That probably was the winning move, being out there and not taking all that dirt.” Following the race, the stewards called for an inquiry to look at the stretch run, but no change was made to the order of finish Saturday. Last Samurai was the 123-pound highweight after winning both the Grade 3 Razorback Handicap and the Essex at Oaklawn. “He ran his heart out, like he always does,” jockey Cristian Torres told Oaklawn publicity. “Turning for home, I had the whole rail open for me. When I asked him, he went right through for me.” Torres said his horse was bothered by Stilleto Boy, who raced between Last Samurai and Proxy. “When he bumped me, it took the momentum a little bit from the horse," Torres told publicity. "He’s the type of horse that something small can cost him the race, just like what happened today. But I’m very, very happy that he kept going and tried all the way to the wire.” Stilleto Boy was coming off a neck win over Proxy in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap. “An unlucky head bob,” jockey Kent Desormeaux told publicity. “He does what he has to. He’s very talented, and I was happy to ride him.” Stidham added cheek pieces to Proxy’s equipment for the Oaklawn Handicap and said plans are to wear the equipment for his next start. He said the horse will be considered for the Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs. “We’ll be looking at the Stephen Foster, Saratoga in the summer,” Stidham said. “Our main goal for sure is the Breeders’ Cup. We want to have the best horse we can on that day, and whatever races fit that program to get us there is what we’re going to do.” Proxy is a son of Tapit and the multiple Grade 1-winning millionaire Panty Raid. He races for his breeder, Godolphin. “He’s getting better with age and maturity, learning how to put it together and get there,” Stidham said. “Unfortunately, he didn’t get there in the Santa Anita Handicap, but today, when he came down the lane, he was all business. He runs hard every time.” Proxy has now won 5 of 16 starts and has earned $1.7 million. He was winning his second stakes behind last fall’s Grade 1 Clark at Churchill Downs. The remaining order of finish in the Oaklawn was Senor Buscador in fourth, followed by favorite Charge It, Classic Causeway and Rated R Superstar.  :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.