Utley scores first stakes win in Dixie

BALTIMORE – Utley, persistently knocking at the door during a seven-race losing streak, finally broke through, rallying strongly down the middle of the course to win the Grade 2, $400,000 Dixie Stakes by one length over Hey Leroy on Saturday at Pimlico.

A 6-year-old Augustin Stable homebred trained by Jonathan Sheppard, Utley had scored his most recent victory in an allowance race during the 2013 spring meet at Keeneland. Edgar Prado rode him that day, and Prado was back aboard Saturday for Utley’s rousing finish.

“Jonathan was very confident,” said Prado, who won the Dixie for the first time. “He said he’d been training very well. I got lucky and was able to save ground both turns. He finished very well.”

The win was Utley's sixth, but was his first in a stakes. By Smart Strike, Utley paid $17 to win.

Utley, a one-run closer, had fallen victim to slow paces in several of the losses during his dry spell, but he had a quick tempo at which to run Saturday, as Fredericksburg, dogged by Chamois, set splits of 23.87, 47.90, and 1:12.54 over a course rated good. Chamois, making his first start since November, got the best of Fredicksburg in midstretch, but he could not stave off the closers and finished third. Jockey Joe Bravo said Chamois felt like he waited for horses after making the lead.

Meanwhile, Utley, switched out for a clear run outside tiring rivals, got a full head of steam by the eighth pole and powered to the front in the final half-furlong, stopping the timer in 1:43.88 for 1 1/16 miles. Hey Leroy, who stalked the pace, ran on steadily for second, with Charming Kitten fourth. Favored Up With the Birds never got involved, and jockey Joel Rosario said he never really picked up the bridle, and might not have cared for the going.