Three-year-old stakes highlight winter/spring meet

Turfway Park officially divides its roughly four months of racing into two meets – the holiday meet, which ran from Nov. 29 through Dec. 31, and the winter/spring meet, getting underway now. The holiday meet ended with jockey Gerardo Corrales, trainer Paulo Lobo, and owner Larry Best’s OXO Equine winning their respective meet titles.

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The winter/spring meet, which runs through April 1, is highlighted by Turfway’s 3-year-old stakes schedule, which last year produced upset Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike. Following the $125,000 Turfway Prevue Stakes, a 6 1/2-furlong sprint on Jan. 7, the track hosts the $125,000 Leonatus Stakes at a mile on Jan. 21; the $150,000 John Battaglia Memorial at 1 1/16 miles on March 4; and the Grade 3, $700,000 Jeff Ruby at 1 1/8 miles on March 25. The Battaglia Memorial awards Kentucky Derby points to its top finishers on a 20-8-6-4-2 basis, while the Ruby awards points on the 100-40-30-20-10 scale.

Rich Strike was third in the 2022 Leonatus, fourth in the Battaglia, and third in the Ruby.

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