Tribesman sharp in comeback

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Tribesman, making his first start since May 16, blasted to the lead immediately, and set sizzling fractions as he scored a 4 1/2-length victory in the $76,000 California State Fair Sprint on Saturday at Cal Expo.

Tribesman's final time of 1:07.61 was one-hundredth of a second off Passing Game's track record set in 1993 when timing was done by fifths of seconds.

He broke on top under Russell Baze and had a 1 1/2-length lead over Vaderator after an opening quarter in 21.28 seconds and a half in 43.01. He extended his margin in the stretch and paid $4.40 to win

Jack Hes Tops, last early, checked when he ran up on heels at the quarter pole but finished strongly to edge Victory Kid by a nose for second.

Trainer Roger Hansen, who was concerned about the 4-year-old gelding's fitness coming off the 3 1/2-month break, was pleased by the performance.

"He ran a nice race," said Hansen. "He went pretty even all the way." Tribesman won for the first time since capturing the $100,000 Phoenix Gold Cup on Feb. 16. He earned $45,100 for his seventh victory in 14 starts while lifting his career earnings to $286,781.