Saturday, November 03, 2012

George Vancouver brilliant in Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf victory

9-1 shot George Vancouver gave trainer Aidan O'Brien his second straight win in the $1 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf when the son of Henrythenavigator burst clear of the field in the Santa Anita homestretch to win the one-mile turf race in decisive fashion.

Under a terrific ride from Ryan Moore, George Vancouver was content to settle back into sixth place early on as Summit County led the way through fractions of :22.48 and :46.47. I'm Boundtoscore and Gervinho were racing right behind him in second and third, while Brown Almighty and Lines of Battle were also close to the pace. Then came George Vancouver, with Joha, Dundonnell, Noble Tune, Know More, Dry Summer, Balance the Books, Artigiano, and Fantastic Moon trailing the field.

Rounding the final turn, Joha and Know More commenced wide rallies to contend for the lead, but Dundonnell and George Vancouver were both moving strongly in between horses, and when the field straightened for home, the pair burst clear together and hooked up in a battle for the lead. However, the battle was short, with George Vancouver leaving his rival behind en route to an exceptional victory, stopping the clock in the magnificent time of 1:33.78 seconds.

Noble Tune put in a good run for second, while Balance the Books also came on late to secure third over Dundonnell.

-Keelerman

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