Vekoma wins Blue Grass Stakes for Kentucky kid Weaver
LEXINGTON, Ky. – In contrast to less predictable events that have occurred along the Kentucky Derby trail this year, form held up just fine Saturday, when the favored Vekoma sped to victory in the 95th running of the Grade 2, $1 million Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland.
In fact, the top three favorites in a full gate of 14 finished in that order. Vekoma, always prominent under Javier Castellano, drew clear in upper stretch to win by 3 1/2 lengths over a late-running Win Win Win (3-1), who overcame a difficult trip to get second from Signalman (6-1) in the final jump of the 1 1/8-mile race. Somelikeithotbrown, the 9-1 fifth choice who contested the lead with Vekoma to upper stretch, was another three-quarters of a length back in fourth.
Vekoma, the first Blue Grass winner since Coaltown (1948) to win with as few as three prior starts, returned $4.80 after finishing in 1:50.93 over a fast track.
The results were perfect to Vekoma’s trainer, George Weaver, who grew up in Louisville, where Churchill Downs, the home of the Kentucky Derby, is located.
“I’m pretty tore up right now,” Weaver said in the immediate aftermath. “I’m excited, I’m so happy. I have family here. I grew up in Kentucky, went to the Blue Grass when I was a kid every year. To win this race is very special.”
The Blue Grass is worth 170 qualifying points (100-40-20-10) toward the May 4 Kentucky Derby, meaning at least the top three finishers – and maybe the fourth – will have enough points to make the 20-horse cutoff. Both Signalman (18) and Somelikeithotbrown (20) already had points going into the race.
Vekoma, a Kentucky-bred by Candy Ride, now has won three of four starts. Owned by Randy Hill (R.A. Hill Stable) and Mike Gatsas (Gatsas Stables), the chestnut colt won both starts at 2, including the Nashua at Aqueduct, then finished third behind Code of Honor and Bourbon War in the March 2 Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream in his lone prior start this year.
Weaver, whose lone prior Derby starter was Tencendur (17th in 2015), said he just wants Vekoma to stay happy and healthy in the four weeks leading up to the 145th Derby.
“He’s such a talented horse,” he said. “He’s done things in the morning that I’ve never had a horse do before. As long as he stays healthy, the training part is going to be the easy part.”
Mike Trombetta, the trainer of Win Win Win, was elated with how stoutly his stable star closed in the last quarter-mile under Irad Ortiz Jr. After breaking a bit sluggishly and finding himself behind all but one rival after a quarter-mile, the colt charged from well back to finish fastest of all.
“These conversations about the longer distances, well, maybe things are starting to swing in our favor,” said Trombetta, the Maryland-based conditioner whose only previous Derby starter, Sweetnorthernsaint, finished seventh as a lukewarm favorite behind Barbaro in 2006. “I’m absolutely thrilled with the way he ran. We’d love to go to the Derby, assuming he comes out of it good.”
After the top four, the order was Chess Chief, So Alive, Sir Winston, Admire, Moonster, Lucky Lee, Market King, Aquadini, Dream Maker, and Parsimony.
The $2 exacta (2-8) paid $18.60, the $1 trifecta (2-8-3) returned $37.80, and the 10-cent superfecta (2-8-3-1) was worth $18.95.
The Blue Grass ended an all-graded-stakes pick five (races 6-10) that returned $45,863.45 for a perfect 50-cent ticket. Handle was $1,079,197.
Vekoma will be looking to end a trend that has bugged Keeneland officials in recent years: The last Kentucky Derby winner to start in the Blue Grass was Street Sense (second in 2007), and the last to sweep both races was Strike the Gold (1991).
Attendance on a mostly sunny afternoon was 34,775, a Keeneland record for the first Saturday of a spring meet. The all-time record of 40,617 was set in 2012 on Blue Grass Day, when the race was still run three weeks (not four) prior to the Derby.
