Super Chow benefits from a cagey ride and wet track to take Maryland Sprint

BALTIMORE - Super Chow’s speed and his affinity for a wet surface proved a lethal combination Saturday at Pimlico as he cruised to a 1 3/4-length victory in the Grade 3, $100,000 Maryland Sprint Stakes.

Prevalence, the favorite by $408 over Coastal Mission, finished second, 1 1/2 lengths in front of Prince of Jericho. Coastal Mission was fourth followed by Jaxon Traveler and Bourbon Bash. Little Roo Rod was scratched.

Super Chow won for the ninth time in 19 starts. The Maryland Sprint was his third Grade 3 stakes this year and his seventh stakes win overall.

His two previous wins this year - the Toboggan and Tom Fool at Aqueduct - were achieved over wet tracks. He was coming off a third in the Grade 2 Carter, run over a fast track.

Javier Castellano rode Super Chow for the first time. He said he got a call from trainer Jorge Delgado on Friday asking if he was open to ride the horse as Delgado entered the horse having not named a jockey.

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Castellano said he hustled Super Chow out of the gate and opened up a two-length lead while running a quarter in 23.23 seconds. Castellano felt the race might have been over at that point.

“You can see he’s a fast horse, he can go 21, he went 23 and change,” Castellano said. “I believe that was the key to win the race.”

Super Chow maintained a clear advantage through a half-mile in 46.49 seconds. In a departure from his usual tendency to drift in the stretch, Super Chow maintained a straight course and was able to hold a hard-trying Prevalence at bay.

“Those type of horses, you can’t grab too much, you have to have a lot of finesse with your hands,” Castellano said. “That’s the key to correcting the horse.”

Super Chow, a 4-year-old son of Lord Nelson owned by Lea Farms, covered the six furlongs in 1:11.19 in the mud and returned $10.40. Super Chow was given a 96 Beyer Speed Figure.

Delgado, who was at Monmouth Park on Saturday, said he didn’t name a rider at entry time because he was between running Super Chow in the Maryland Sprint or the $100,000 Mr. Prospector Stakes at Monmouth on May 27. Delgado said he chose the Maryland Sprint to keep him in graded company.

Delgado said Saturday’s effort was the best race Super Chow has run and he praised Castellano for his ride, especially keeping the horse from drifting.

“I believe Javier did an outstanding job since he never breezed the horse or rode the horse before,” Delgado said. “How he adjusted to a horse that is kind of difficult to ride was remarkable. In my eyes, I would say that was [Super Chow’s] best effort.”

Delgado noted that he and Castellano are from the same town, Maracaibo, in Venezuela.

Delgado said Super Chow would likely point to the Grade $350,000 True North at Saratoga on June 8.

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Prevalence finished second in this race for the second straight year. Trainer Brendan Walsh said jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. told him breaking from post position 2 may have compromised him.

“He said if he was outside of that horse he might have been able to pressure him a little more,” Walsh said. “He ran a good race, we’re very happy with him. That winner is a good horse. No shame running second to him.”

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