Mr Fisk, a 3-year-old Arrogate colt, registered his first graded stakes victory Sunday at Del Mar as he came running strongly late to capture the 46th edition of the $101,000 Native Diver (G3) by 1 1/4 lengths.
The homebred colt races in the silks of Lexington-Ky.-based Larry Brookshire's Sunny Brook Stables. He is trained by Bob Baffert, who also trained his sire, and gave Del Mar's leading rider Juan Hernandez his fourth winner of the afternoon.
Finishing second in the 1 1/8 mile feature was Skinner, who went off as the 11-10 favorite in the race. Newgrange, third in last year's edition of the Native Diver, checked in third again, another 2 1/2 lengths farther back.
“This horse has really improved since this summer,” Baffert said of Mr Fisk, who entered the race following his victory in the Shared Belief (Listed) Sept. 3 at Del Mar. “He's a horse we knew would be late coming around. But he's changed so much since August. I was a little bit worried about the pace. It was a bit slow but Juan (Hernandez) realized they were going too slow and he made his move. He's still a little green, learning how to run, but he has a bright future.”
Final time was 1:49.69 on a track rated as fast. Mr Fisk paid $8.40 to win as the second choice in the seven-horse field.
“This horse has finally figured out how to run,” Hernandez said. “He put himself outside in the clear and he was traveling really good, very relaxed. He is very professional. I moved a little early to see if the horse in front of me was still waiting or if they wanted to go. I waited a little longer and then we hit the stretch. So I switched my whip, he switched leads, and that was it, we found an opening. I love this horse today because he loved the distance. I was waiting for this distance for him and it looks like he owned it. He always closes. The last couple of races he would break really, really sharp — just like today.”
Kentucky-bred Mr Fisk, a member of late sire Arrogate's second and next-to-last crop, has won three of his eight starts and earned a first prize of $60,000 Sunday to increase his lifetime bankroll to $185,700. His dam is the Manduro (GER) mare Plein Air (IRE).
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