Keeneland: Bulletin 3-for-3 after taking Palisades
Stakes recap by Keeneland’s publicity department:
LEXINGTON, KY (April 4, 2019) – WinStar Farm, China Horse Club and SF Racing’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint winner Bulletin shot to the front out of the gate and never trailed, posting a 1½-length victory over Real News to win Thursday’s inaugural running of the $100,000 Palisades Turf Sprint before a Spring Meet opening-day crowd of 11,601.
Bulletin won the inaugural Palisades Turf Sprint on opening day at Keeneland’s spring meet. Coady Photography pictures
Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Javier Castellano, Bulletin covered the 5½ furlongs on a firm turf course in 1:02.92 to remain undefeated in three starts. The victory extended Pletcher’s Keeneland record for stakes wins to 54.
“Any time you have a (talented) horse at 2 and they turn 3, they don’t always hold their form,” said WinStar president Elliott Walden. “His run in the Breeders’ Cup was special, so we were hoping that he would come back good. We’re just real excited to see him come back to the form that he showed in the Breeders’ Cup.”
Walden said Bulletin could be pointed to England’s famed Royal Ascot meet in June.
“That’s kind of what we’re looking at,” he said. “We’ll huddle up with Todd, let him do his job. He did a great job getting (Bulletin) ready for today. The horse was three (lengths) in front at the eighth pole, and I knew he wasn’t going to get beat then. He’s a very talented horse. We’d be honored to go to Royal Ascot.”
Bulletin was pressured early by Yes I Am Free as he raced through the first quarter of a mile in 22.10. Second choice Abyssinian took up the chase on the far turn only to have Bulletin kick clear at the head of the lane and cruise home.
A Keeneland September Yearling Sale graduate, Bulletin closed his brief 2018 campaign with a similar front-running victory in the inaugural Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Churchill Downs.
A Kentucky-bred son of City Zip out of the Woodman mare Sue’s Good News, Bulletin has earned $655,570, including Thursday’s $60,000 check.
Sent off as the favorite in the field of 12, Bulletin rewarded his backers with payoffs of $4, $3 and $2.40. Real News, who rallied for second under Joel Rosario, returned $5.60 and $3.60 with Abyssinian finishing another 2¼ lengths back in third under John Velazquez and paying $2.80 to show.
It was another neck back to Vivid Verse in fourth with Uncapped, Tobacco Road, Yes I Am Free, Vogt, Mick’s Star, Dom Carlos (IRE), Strike Silver and Joyful Heart following in order.
Racing continues Friday with a 10-race program that begins at 1:05 p.m. ET with the 31st running of the $150,000 Kentucky Utilities Transylvania (G3) for 3-year-olds going 1 1/16 miles on the turf highlighting the card. The Kentucky Utilities Transylvania will be the afternoon’s ninth race with a 5:30 p.m.post time.
