Sky of Hook scores upset in Rick Violette Stakes

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – A driving rainstorm, a sloppy track, and an inability to stay straight in the stretch didn’t prevent Sky of Hook from winning the $100,000 Rick Violette Stakes on Wednesday at Saratoga.

Sky of Hook, the longest shot on the board at 9-1, ran down the pacesetting Listentoyourheart in the final jump to win the Rick Violette, a race for New York-bred juveniles formerly run as the Rockville Centre. It was renamed for Violette, a trainer and longtime president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association who died last October due to cancer.

Sky of Hook, a son of Tapiture trained by Rudy Rodriguez for EV Racing Stable, won his debut by a head at Belmont in May despite veering out in the stretch.

On Wednesday, he lugged in once at the three-eighths pole and then again at the eighth pole before Luis Saez was able to straighten him out and get up late.

The race was run in a driving rainstorm that prompted New York Racing Association officials to cancel the first race, a steeplechase event, and move the five scheduled turf races to the dirt.

Saez had Sky of Hook third early on but only 2 1/2 lengths off the early pace. He moved three wide in the stretch to get outside of a chasing Mission Wrapitup, the 6-5 favorite. Above the eighth pole, he lugged in significantly and took a lot of kickback before rerallying to get up.

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“When we came to the three-eighths, he was getting in a little bit, I think because there was so much water on the track, and when we came into the stretch, he was like that too, but he was running. He was game,” Saez said. “He kept trying, and finally he got to the last horse in the end.”

Sky of Hook covered the six furlongs in 1:13.17 and returned $20.60.

It was a tough beat for Listentoyourheart, who was on the lead for every jump but the last one under Manny Franco.

“I’m waiting as long as I can because my horse ran five furlongs first time,” Franco said. “I’m trying to save some horse for the end. That’s what I did, but the winner was right there, and I got beat.”