Showing Up finishes fast in Jamaica

The first step of trainer Barclay Tagg's revised plan for Showing Up went according to the script.

Showing Up, the 2-5 favorite, repelled a stern challenge from Outperformance in upper stretch and drew off to a 3 1/2-length victory in the Grade 2, $300,000 at Belmont Park. Outperformance finished second, two lengths ahead of Spider Power.

Devil's Preacher finished fourth and was followed in the order of finish by Kiss the Kid, Presious Passion, Carnera, and Irish Osprey.

Tagg chose to run Showing Up in the Jamaica after scrapping plans to point the 3-year-old to one of two Breeders' Cup races because he felt they were too tough. The victory was the sixth for Showing Up, a son of Strategic Mission, in eight career starts and his third from four races on the turf. He also won the $1 million Colonial Turf Cup and the Grade 1 Secretariat. His only grass loss came in the Man o' War, where he finished third.

Under Cornelio Velasquez, Showing Up settled nicely in third as Kiss the Kid set fractions of 25.23, 49.72, and 1:12.97 while being hounded by Carnera.

Around the far turn, Velasquez guided Showing Up three wide while Outperformance, under Javier Castellano, launched a four-wide bid. Though Outperformance got to Showing Up's flank at the three-sixteenths pole, Showing Up kicked home powerfully, running a final eighth in 11.35 seconds for the win.

Showing Up ran 1 1/8 miles in 1:47.81 over a good turf course and returned $2.90 to win.

"He ran a beautiful race," said Tagg, who trains Showing Up for the Lael Stable of Roy and Gretchen Jackson. "He settled behind the speed very nicely. I never expected him to be that cool. Outperformance was a horse I was worried about. [Trainer] Rick Violette is as hot as a firecracker and we were giving that horse [nine pounds]. When Outperformance came up alongside of him, he kicked in beautifully."

Tagg will now point Showing Up to the Grade 1, $500,000 Hollywood Derby at Hollywood Park on Nov. 26.