The Elkstone Group's Maryland homebred Joe, a multiple stakes winner on dirt, made the successful transition to the turf with a hard-fought neck victory in the $100,000 James W. Murphy Stakes, and Team Hanley and Parkland Thoroughbreds' Joy's Rocket scored a dominant 4 ¼-length triumph in the $100,000 Skipat Stakes Saturday on the Preakness Stakes undercard at Pimlico Race Course.
Briefly under consideration for the Preakness following his victory in the April 16 Federico Tesio at Laurel Park, Joe ($5) was instead redirected to the Murphy by Elkstone's Stuart Grant and trainer Michael Trombetta. A Declaration of War colt out of the Arch mare Battle Bridge, he had tried turf once before when he was fifth in a 5 ½-furlong sprint in his career debut last October.
In the Murphy, regular rider Victor Carrasco rated Joe in sixth along the rail inside Crabs N Beer as Uncaptured Spirit and 30-1 long shot Epic Luck dueled up front through splits of :22.85 and :45.85, with Local Motive and Ready to Purrform – both previous stakes winners in Maryland – leading the second flight.
Advancing strongly and still with plenty of horse, Carrasco maintained his inside position until midway around the far turn when he tipped out to split Uncaptured Spirit and Ready to Purrform and straightened for home with a short lead. Ready to Purrform ranged up on their outside and the two horses raced stride-for-stride through the stretch with Joe getting clear late.
Crabs N Beer was third, 2 ¼ lengths behind the runner-up, followed by Uncaptured Spirit, Determined Kingdom, Shake Em Loose, Local Motive and Epic Luck. The winning time was 1:35.26 over a firm course.
Joe – named for Grant's friend U.S. President Joe Biden – was named Maryland's champion 2-year-old male for 2021 after breaking his maiden and winning the Maryland Juvenile in mid-December at Laurel Park. This year, he won his two-turn debut in a 1 1/16-mile optional claiming allowance Jan. 23 and was second to Shake Em Loose in the Private Terms prior to his Tesio victory.
It was the first Murphy win for Carrasco. Trombetta previously won the Murphy in 2016 with Marengo Road.
The James W. Murphy pays homage to the late trainer that won nearly 1,400 races and more than 50 stakes and $24 million in purses starting in 1965. He was named the MTHA's Trainer of the Year in 2006, three years before he died at age 82.
In the Skipat, Joy's Rocket, winless in her previous eight starts that included four second-place finishes, looked like a winner all the way around historic Pimlico.
It was the second stakes victory of the day for jockey Joel Rosario and Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen, who combined to take the $150,000 Maryland Sprint (G3) with Jaxon Traveler. The pair also teamed with Kentucky Derby (G1) runner-up Epicenter, who later on the card was second in the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes (G1).
Joy's Rocket broke running and was quickly joined up front by 2-1 favorite Cilla as they went a quarter-mile in :22.57 with Time Limit, a stakes winner in Maryland to open her 2022 season, positioned to the outside in third. Time Limit moved up to second after a half in :45.06 and loomed a threat approaching the stretch, when Joy's Rocket began to steadily edge clear under a hand ride to win in 1:09.76 over a fast main track.
Fillie d'Esprit made a belated move on the outside to get up for second, 1 ½ lengths ahead of Time Limit. Cinnabunny, Cilla, Oxana, Glory Dia and Street Lute, an eight-time stakes winner making her second start of the year, completed the order of finish.
Joy's Rocket had not won since taking the Letellier Memorial in December 2020 at Fair Grounds for her third stakes victory in five starts. The 4-year-old filly was 0-for-5 in 2021 with three seconds, including a head loss in the Raven Run (G2) at Keeneland. She was runner-up to Southern Grayce in an April 30 optional claimer at Oaklawn Park.
Bred in Connecticut, Skipat won 26 of 45 career races over six years, earning $614,215 between 1977 and 1981. Two of her wins came in the Barbara Fritchie (G3), in 1979 and 1981, the latter coming the year after she had been retired and bred and brought back to the races.
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