Fort Larned stamped himself as a colt to watch in the handicap division this year when he broke the Gulfstream Park track record for 1 3/16th miles in the $100,000 Skip Away Stakes (gr. III) this afternoon.
Ridden to victory by Julien Leparoux, Fort Larned settled into the second position early on as Uptowncharlybrown set a moderate pace of :23.93 and :47.45. Alma d'Oro was back in third, followed by Malibu Glow, Self Control, and Praetero. Race favorite Where's Sterling was next, racing toward the rear of the field while on the fence, with Numb Lips content to trail.
The positions remained unchanged down the backstretch, but as the field rounded the far turn things began to heat up. Uptowncharlybrown gave way, leaving Fort Larned on the lead. Alma d'Oro was moving up to challenge, and Self Control was making an eye-catching bid on the far outside. But Fort Larned and Alma d'Oro began to open up on the field as they approached the homestretch, entering the straightaway at least six lengths clear of Self Control. From there, the pair dueled gamely through the stretch, with Fort Larned courageously holding off his rival to win by roughly two lengths in 1:53.92, eclipsing the track record of 1:54.74 set by Eddington on March 5th, 2005.
Self Control finished a distant third, while Where's Sterling and Numb Lips rounded out the top five. The winner is trained by Ian Wilkes.
-Keelerman
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