Spendthrift Farm's Major Dude, a two-time graded stakes winner on turf headlines a field of 14 3-year-olds and two also-eligibles entered Monday for Saturday's 32nd running of the $500,000 American Turf (G2) going 1 1/16 miles over the Matt Winn Turf Course at Churchill Downs.
The American Turf will go as the ninth race with 3:40 p.m. post time.
Trained by Todd Pletcher, Major Dude won the Pilgrim (G2) last fall and the Kitten's Joy (G3) in February and most recently was second in the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) on the all-weather surface at Turfway Park. Irad Ortiz Jr. has the mount and will break from post one.
Also in the field are graded stakes winners Mo Stash, owned by BBN Racing and trained by Vicki Oliver, and Susan Moulton's Andthewinneris, trained by Wayne Catalano.
Adding further intrigue to the race are two of the top colts to debut this winter at Gulfstream Park: Lawrence Sarf's undefeated Far Bridge and e Five Racing Thoroughbreds' Carl Spackler (IRE).
The field for the American Turf, with riders and weights from the rail out, is:
- Major Dude (Irad Ortiz Jr., 122 pounds),
- Far Bridge (Joel Rosario, 118),
- Mendelssohns March (Brian Hernandez Jr., 118),
- Talk of the Nation (Tyler Gaffalione, 118),
- Johannes (Umberto Rispoli, 118),
- Behind Enemy Lines (GB) (Flavien Prat, 118),
- Desert Duke (Corey Lanerie, 118),
- Mo Stash (Luis Saez, 120),
- Anglophile (John Velazquez, 118),
- Otago (Adam Beschizza, 118),
- Carl Spackler (IRE) (Jose Ortiz, 118),
- Funtastic Again (Gerardo Corrales, 118),
- Andthewinneris (Florent Geroux, 122),
- Webslinger (Javier Castellano, 118.
- Also-eligible: Wadsworth (Manny Franco, 118),
- Also-eligible: Scoobie Quando (Christophe Lemaire, 118).
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