Fort Larned pulled off a mild upset last night in the $300,000 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap (gr. III), turning away a bid from 1-2 favorite Successful Dan to win the nine-furlong race in decisive fashion.
Under a perfect ride from Brian Hernandez Jr., Fort Larned got off to an alert start and went straight to the lead, setting a very slow pace of :24.57 and :48.43 while leading by about 2 1/2 lengths. Shadowbdancing was racing in second, followed Awesome Gem and Successful Dan. Taptowne and Headache were the early trailers.
Following three-quarters of a mile in 1:12.22, Successful Dan made a bid for the lead, but soon found that Fort Larned had way too much left in the tank. The front-runner ran his fourth quarter in a blazing :23.32 and opened up a clear advantage. Successful Dan continued on strongly to the wire, but Fort Larned's final eighth in :11.88 sealed the deal. Fort Larned proved much the best in the end, drawing off at the finish to win by three lengths in 1:47.42.
Successful Dan finished much the best of the rest, 2 3/4 lengths clear of Awesome Gem. Shadowbdancing, Taptowne, and Headache completed the order of finish.
The winner is trained by Ian Wilkes and owned by Janis R. Whitham.
-Keelerman
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