Short field sours Circle C Classic

COLLINSVILLE, IL - Thinned to a four-horse field by a spate of scratches Saturday night before Fairmount Park's largest non-Derby Day crowd in years, the $50,000 Circle C Classic for older males was sapped of all pari-mutuel drama as bettors headed for the exits before what should have been the four-stakes card?s most exciting race.

Racing at a mile-and-an-eighth for the first time in his 35-race career, local six-year-old Beabasque galloped to a five-length, wire-to-wire upset over Bernie Flint's favored Ask the Lord. Artemus Sunrise, the morning line favorite trained by Flint's son, Steve, scratched before racing began, as did two other contenders, Wildwood Royal and Tap Dancing Maulk. Beabasque covered the distance in 1:51 and paid $5.40 to win over a fast track. Little More was third.

Tepexpan ($21.80) was the longest shot to prevail in one of the night's four features, going wire-to-wire to upset a pair of favorites, Wise Diplomat and Jazzy Gallop, by two lengths over 1-1/16 miles in the $45,000 King Knocker for three-year-old males. Chicago-based Meadow Bride shipped in for a one-length victory in the $40,000 Kabbendjian Stakes for three-year-old fillies, while Michael Tomlinson's Bubba Gum won the $30,000 Donada Farm Handicap with leading Ellis Park jockey Jesus Castanon aboard, finishing two-fifths of a second off the course record at 1:09 over six furlongs.