The 72nd running of the Best of Ohio Governor's Buckeye Cup at JACK Thistledown in North Randall, Ohio, provided racing fans with a real nail-biter as Magna Man captured the 1¼ mile contest in a photo finish for rider Chelsey Keiser. The beautiful black 8-year-old gelding appeared to be beaten coming to the wire by rival Forewarned (Sonny Leon), but came back in the final strides to best his rival by a whisker.
Magna Man, who left the gate at 13-1, held off 7-1 Forewarned, with 7-1 I Wanna Win (Malcolm Franklin) third and 1-5 favorite Wicked Warrior (Ricardo Feliciano) fourth.
“I've never clicked with a horse like this, he's always had my back,” said an emotional Keiser in the winner's circle. “When that horse came up beside us, I said, 'boy you've got to give me more,' and he did.”
Trained by Ivan Vasquez, Magna Man is owned by John Hoctel and breeder Ron Treadway, and now has $324,280 in lifetime earnings. This was his first stakes triumph, as the son of Magna Graduate—Personal Notebook, by Miner's Mark has found his greatest success at the allowance level to date. Magna Man was clocked in 2:03.44 in the Governor's Buckeye Cup.
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