A 3yo to Watch: March

In today's fifth race at Aqueduct, an 8.5-furlong maiden special weight for three-year-olds, March turned in a very nice effort to win by a neck over Don'tbetwithbruno. Trained by Chad Brown for owner Robert LaPenta, March was sent off as the 4-5 favorite off a runner-up effort in his debut and lived up to expectations, tracking fractions of :24.11, :48.57, and 1:13.25 before opening up a lead in the homestretch and holding off a late charge from the runner-up to triumph. The final time for a mile and seventy yards was a good 1:43.34. Don'tbetwithbruno, a Todd Pletcher/Mike Repole colt coming off a fourth-place effort finish in his debut, saved ground throughout and rallied well in the homestretch to just miss winning. The top two finished approximately seven or eight lengths in front of the third-place horse.