Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Bourbonize’s kick gets best of favorite
HOT SPRINGS — Bourbonize caught 7-5 favorite Knock Em Flat on the outside in the shadow of the wire to win the $100,000 Northern Spur Stakes for 3-year-olds Saturday afternoon at Oaklawn Park.
Bourbonize, who was ridden by Ramon Vazquez, finished a neck ahead of Knock Em Flat, while it was another three-quarters of a length farther back to Fabulous Kid, who led into the stretch, in third.
Bourbonize was racing in blinkers for the first time Saturday after being well-beaten in his past two starts, both Grade III stakes events.
“He’s worked the last few times in blinkers,” winning trainer Kellyn Gorder said. “It wasn’t so much to put speed in him but to keep him focused in the lane.”
Six Spot, Sheltowee’s Boy, Rivers Run Deep, Son of Dixie, Unstoppable Colby, Northern Merit and Zen’s Way completed the order of finish in the 1-mile Northern Spur.
Bourbonize paid $14.20, $5.60 and $4.60. Knock Em Flat paid $4 and $3.20. Fabulous Kid paid $5.
Bourbonize won for the third time in five career starts to increase his earnings to $151,058.
A $ 40,000 Fasig-Tipton July yearling purchase, Bourbonize races for Bourbon Lane Stable LLC (James Hill).
Fabulous Kid immediately went to the front from post 8 and maintained a 1½-length advantage through a :46.77 half-mile.
Knock Em Flat chased Fabulous Kid from the start and took a narrow lead in deep stretch, but couldn’t hold off Bourbonize’s late bid.
Bourbonize, who was fifth after a half-mile, covered the distance in 1:38.09 over a fast track.
Bourbonize was saddled by Johnny Ortiz, who ran Gorder’s Oaklawn division in 2014.
After winning his first two career starts, Bourbonize ran sixth in the $300,000 Grade III Southwest Stakes on Feb. 17 and fifth in the $800,000 Grade III Sunland Derby on March 23 at Sunland Park in New Mexico.
“This was a nice way to end the meet, for sure,” Gorder said.