Turfway Park: Mac the Man eased up late in Prevue score

Mac the Man proved clearly best when romping to a four-length triumph Saturday in the 28th running of the $50,000 Turfway Prevue at Turfway Park in northern Kentucky.

An easy winner of a Dec. 8 Turfway allowance designed as a prep for the Prevue, Mac the Man validated that effort when eased up in the final stages of the 6 1/2-furlong Prevue, finishing in 1:18.31 over Polytrack. He returned $7 as second choice in a field of eight 3-year-olds.

With Norberto Arroyo Jr. riding for locally based trainer Jeff Greenhill, Mac the Man tracked a pair of front-runners before swooping to the lead leaving the quarter pole. Smokinindaboysroom held second, while Lew and Mike was along for third, another 1 3/4 lengths back. Bye Bye Bernie, shipping in from south Florida as the 7-5 favorite for Elvis Trujillo and trainer Kelly Breen, ran fourth.

The $2 exacta (3-5) paid $51.60; the $1 trifecta (3-5-2) returned $151; and the dime superfecta (3-5-2-6) was worth $33.95.

The Prevue leads to the following races in the 3-year-old division at Turfway: the WEBN (one mile) on Feb. 2, the Battaglia Memorial (1 1/16 miles) on March 2, and the Turfway showcase, the Grade 3 Spiral Stakes (1 1/8 miles) on March 23. The Spiral, with 50 points to the winner, is the only Turfway race worth any points in the new system being employed for eligibility into the Kentucky Derby in case of an oversubscribed field.

Mac the Man, a Kentucky-bred by El Corredor, is owned by Greenhill’s wife, Sherri. The bay colt can be expected back for the WEBN.