6th-Belmont The Big A, $95,000, Msw, 10-22, 2yo, 7f, 1:25.64, ft, 4 1/4 lengths.
RUDDER'S MEN (c, 2, Battalion Runner–Unblemished, by Speightstown) was easily the most popular choice at 1-2 for his debut run after working a bullet four furlongs from the gate in :46 2/5 (1/187) Oct. 7. Campaigned by the same connections as his freshman sire (by Unbridled's Song), Rudder's Men hustled to the front shortly after the break and settled nicely a path off the rail through a sharp opening quarter in :22.53. Kept under wraps until he straightened for home, he responded well to quick urging and sprinted clear of the field, coming into the final furlong with a well-established gap. Classic Legacy (Into Mischief) closed well alongside Classic Catch (Classic Empire) to pick up the pieces but Rudder's Men hit the wire wrapped up 4 1/4 lengths to the good. The third winner from Battalion Runner's first crop of nine foals, Rudder's Men is the first foal out of a half-sister to GISW Yaupon (Uncle Mo) and MGSP Sawyer's Hill (Spring At Last). He has a weanling half-brother by Complexity while Unblemished visited Awesome Slew for the 2023 slew. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $52,250. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.
O/B-St. Elias Stables, LLC (FL); T-Todd A. Pletcher.
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