Apprehender repeats as King Cotton king

Apprehender and Alsvid may not roll off the tongue like Affirmed and Alydar, but among older male sprinters at Oaklawn Park, theirs has become a compelling rivalry.

Apprehender got the better of things in the $ 100,000 King Cotton on Saturday for the second year in a row but under more dramatic circumstances than on the same track almost 13 months ago. Postponed a week because of winter weather, the rescheduled race allowed Apprehender more recovery

time from a bone chip that had sidelined him for 10 months.

Last seen being vanned off the track after the Grade 3 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap, the 5- year- old chestnut gelding summoned back class for his fourth victory in eight Oaklawn starts. Whereas he wired the field in last year’s King Cotton, Apprehender came from off the pace from post seven to clip six furlongs in 1: 10.19, Alsvid finishing a half- length back in second and almost four lengths clear of stablemate Black Bear. Dismissed by the season- high crowd of 22,965 and others betting on the race, Apprehender paid $ 18.20, $ 6.20 and $ 4.80.

“He’s such a classy horse,” said jockey David Mello after his third win on the card. “When I came out of the turn, I felt like I had some horse underneath me.”

With entrymates second and third, the trifecta included fourth- place finisher Mico Margarita and the superfecta counted fifth- place runner Picko’s Pride. Completing the order of finish were Heaven’s Runway, Wildcat Country, Anillo and Jasizzle.

Giving trainer Chris Richard his fourth victory in the race, Apprehender is the first repeat King Cotton winner since Semaphore Man for trainer Kelly Von Hemel in 2007 and 2008. The Richard- trained Native Ruler beat Semaphore Man in the 2009 King Cotton and won the race again in 2011.

“He beat a really good field today,” said Richard, whose 13 victories lead the Oaklawn trainer standings. A Posse gelding owned by John and Chris Robson’s Dream Farm LLC, Apprehender may be seen next on March 8 in the $ 100,000 Hot Springs, in which he placed fifth last year, Richard said.