Slow early, Miles Ahead storms home to quick clocking in Thanksgiving Classic
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Miles Ahead had been running well without winning but broke a six-racing losing streak with a sharp score Thursday in the $200,000 Thanksgiving Classic at Fair Grounds.
Miles Ahead started slowly under Joe Talamo and was last of seven after a half-furlong, but breaking from the outside stall gave Talamo and his mount room to maneuver, and before hitting the far turn, Miles Ahead had moved into fourth. The pair cruised around the far turn as Super Ocho blazed through fractions of 21.73 and 44.56, and Super Ocho had no answer when Miles Ahead pounced in upper stretch.
Spurting clear before the eighth pole, Miles Ahead drew away to win by 4 1/2 lengths. Super Ocho, the 8-5 second choice, held second by one length over Kavod. The winning six-furlong clocking of 1:08.49 over a fast-track was an eye-opener.
“He’s a little lazy early on,” said Talamo, born and raised in Jefferson Parish just outside New Orleans and the leading rider at Fair Grounds during the race meet that ended in 2007. “When he switched leads at the top of the stretch, he really exploded. I couldn’t believe the final time.”
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No horse has run a faster six furlongs at Fair Grounds since at least 2014. The track record, 1:08.03, was set in 2003. Thursday’s racing surface was quick but not radically so – Miles Ahead just ran very, very well.
Paul McGee trains Miles Ahead, who paid $4.60 as the favorite, for the Jay Em Ess Stable. Jay Em Ess bought the 6-year-old early in 2022 and this might have been Miles Ahead’s top performance since the purchase. Miles Ahead was racing on just 20 days’ rest following a second-place finish in the Bet On Sunshine Stakes at Churchill.
“It’s a testament to Paul McGee’s training,” Talamo said. “He was coming back quick.”
Miles Ahead now has 13 wins from 32 starts. The gelding is by Competitive Edge out of Jennie R., by Awesome Again. He wasn’t miles ahead of his competition on Thanksgiving, but 4 1/2 lengths was pretty good.
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