Scalding has fourth straight triumph with Ben Ali Stakes
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Scalding ran like the proverbial scalded dog Saturday at Keeneland, easily disposing of favored Warrant when proceeding to a 1 1/4-length triumph in the 91st running of the Grade 3, $299,375 Ben Ali Stakes.
Notching his fourth straight victory, Scalding returned $12.20 as third choice in a field of seven older horses. The 4-year-old Nyquist colt was ridden by Javier Castellano for trainer Shug McGaughey when completing the 1 1/8-mile distance in 1:50.30 over a fast track.
“I liked the way he did it today,” said Castellano, who was in from New York for his first appearance of the spring meet while notching a record fifth win in the Ben Ali. “He made a nice sweeping move and I really liked the way he finished.”
Nicely settled in mid-pack in a clear outside spot to the half-mile pole, Scalding launched a bid that first took him past a pair of tiring front-runners, Cowboy Diplomacy and Mighty Heart, and then past Warrant, the 13-10 favorite off a last-out runner-up finish in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap. Warrant offered minimal resistance as the field wheeled for home.
Scalding is owned by the three-way partnership of Grandview Equine, Cheyenne Stables, and LNJ Foxwoods. After starting his career with two defeats in late 2021, he now has won all four of his starts this year. Before the Ben Ali, the dark bay colt won a Jan. 5 maiden race at Gulfstream Park, followed by an allowance and the Grade 3 Challenger at Tampa Bay Downs.
“He’d been training really well through the Challenger,” said McGaughey assistant Anthony Hamilton Jr. “We were expecting a big effort and we got one.”
Dynamic One, third in the Challenger after being away more than six months, closed steadily from well back when no real threat to the winner. He finished 1 3/4 lengths before Proxy, who nipped Warrant by a nose for third. Completing the order were Tartufo, Mighty Heart, and Cowboy Diplomacy. Title Ready was an early scratch.
The $2 exacta (7-4) paid $69.20, the $1 trifecta (7-4-3) returned $137.90, and the 10-cent superfecta (7-4-3-5) was worth $23.27.