Catching Freedom used an explosive late kick to post a 2½-length victory in Oaklawn's $300,000 Smarty Jones Stakes for 3-year-olds Monday.
Catching Freedom collected 10 points toward starting eligibility for the Kentucky Derby with the victory. The Smarty Jones offered 21 total qualifying points (10-5-3-2-1, respectively) to the top five finishers.
Cristian Torres rode Catching Freedom, the 8-5 favorite, for trainer Brad Cox and Iowa-based Albaugh Family Stables (Dennis Albaugh and son-in-law Jason Loutsch). Cox and Albaugh Family Stables teamed to win the Arkansas Derby (G1) last April with Angel of Empire.
Just Steel finished second in the Smarty Jones, a neck ahead of Informed Patriot.
Gettysburg Address, another neck farther back in fourth, was followed, in order, by Mystik Dan, Lagynos, Mo Winning, Chaperone, and Fidget. The top seven finishers were separated by 4½ lengths.
Catching Freedom ($5.40) finished the 1 1/16 miles over a fast track in 1:44.59. The Smarty Jones was extended to 1 1/16 miles in 2024 after being run at one-mile since its inception in 2008.
“He's a nice horse,” Torres said. “In his two races, he's a horse that hasn't shown much early speed. He just runs them down at the end. We were able to have great trip. I saved all the ground the first part of the race. As soon as I got him out, he accelerated like he always does.”
Cox said Catching Freedom is still learning.
“I think he was a little green there down the lane, but overall showed that he does have a lot of stamina and talent,” he said. “I thought he stepped up and ran well against a solid group of 3-year-olds.”
Ramon Vazquez, rider of Just Steel, said the colt got a little tired in the final sixteenth.
“The trainer (D. Wayne Lukas) told me he was going to be a little bit short. He tried hard. He's going to be a good horse.”
A son of Constitution out of the Pioneerof the Nile mare Catch My Drift, Catching Freedom raised his career earnings to $237,350 with his second victory from three career starts. Bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm LLC, Catching Freedom was a $575,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase in 2022. He was consigned by Warrendale Sales.
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