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Crupi comes out on top in $150K Queens County

by Mary Eddy

St. Elias Stable and Repole Stable’s Crupi outfinished a trio of rivals in a thrilling blanket finish to take the final New York stakes of 2023 in Sunday’s Listed $150,000 Queens County, a nine-furlong route for 3-year-olds and up, at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, Crupi notched back-to-back stakes scores after a 1 1/4-length victory last out in the nine-furlong Discovery under returning rider Kendrick Carmouche. The talented sophomore son of Curlin has now won four of his last five outings, including an eighth-out graduation in July at Monmouth Park and an allowance score against elders in August at Saratoga Race Course.

Away a step slow from post 4, Crupi settled near the rear of the eight-horse field after checking behind the Manny Franco-piloted Quality Chic and King Kumbalay in a scramble for early position. Crupi’s ambitious stablemate Lost Ark was sent strongly by Trevor McCarthy along the inside to take charge from a pressing Kinetic Sky through the first turn and mark an opening quarter-mile in 24.15 seconds over the fast main track.

“We got in a little jam [in the first turn] because I was wanting to be forward and Manny was making it tight on everybody,” Carmouche explained. “I just had to squeeze back and let everything develop again. After that, he got back underneath me and I was in the perfect spot the whole race.”

Kinetic Sky made a swift move and challenged for the lead down the backstretch, but a determined Lost Ark would not relinquish his advantage and held steady at the front as a three-wide Quality Chic vied for third position with the rail-skimming Constitutionlawyer. Crupi patiently awaited his cue while racing in sixth approaching the turn, and was asked for his best with a sweeping four-wide bid after a half-mile in 48.59.

Post-time favorite Signator, who was away slowly from post 5, followed the run of Crupi midway through the turn and ranged up widest of all for his bid towards a resolute Kinetic Sky, who overtook the lead from a retreating Lost Ark at the top of the stretch while under pressure from Quality Chic through three-quarters in 1:13.04.

Kinetic Sky, who was racing on just three days’ rest after winning a local allowance on Thursday, dug in at the sixteenth pole in tandem with Kinetic Sky as Signator and Crupi ranged up on the outside to make it four horses across the racetrack. It appeared to be anyone’s race in the final strides with each horse giving their all, but Crupi had the superior momentum to reach the wire first by a neck over Quality Chic and complete the course in 1:50.13.

Quality Chic put his nose in front of Kinetic Sky for place honors while Signator finished another neck back in fourth. King Kumbalay, Constitutionlawyer, Lost Ark and Forewarned, who trailed throughout, completed the order of finish.

Carmouche, who rode Crupi in the last-out Discovery, expressed his delight in seeing the chestnut colt show maturity.

“The last eighth of a mile, he’s the one who won the race. Crupi won the race the last eighth of a mile,” said Carmouche. “He just took the bit out of my hand and accelerated the last sixteenth. I’m so glad this horse is improving with age. I look forward to see where we go from here.”

Amelia Green, Pletcher’s Belmont Park-based assistant, shared a similar sentiment about Crupi’s progression.

“He’s really matured, mentally. Even as a 2-year-old, he was so immature and as a 3-year-old still,” said Green. “Now, finally, he’s maturing turning four. I feel he’s always had the fight in him, he was just so immature in the mind and the gate was his problem – he broke pretty good today, minus the first turn with all that drama. I think he’s starting to figure it out and learn he likes to run and enjoy it.”

Bred in Kentucky by Claiborne Farm, Crupi brought his record to 12-4-2-3 and banked $82,500 in victory, boosting his total purse earnings to $372,750. He returned $14.80 on a $2 win ticket.

Hall of Famer Javier Castellano said the Shug McGaughey-trained Signator, who had scratched from Saturday’s Grade 3 Harlan’s Holiday at Gulfstream Park in favor of this spot, would have benefitted from swifter fractions.

“For those type of horse, they went 24 and change and 48 and [1:13] I’m very satisfied with the horse - he finished,” said Castellano. “When I stepped him outside, he finished. But those horses, they didn’t come back to me. They all carried their speed all the way to the wire. I don’t have nothing to complain about the horse – he ran a huge race and made a great effort, and I’m very satisfied the way he did it today.”

Live racing resumes Monday at the Big A with an eight-race card to kick off the 2024 racing action on the NYRA circuit. First post is 12:50 p.m. Eastern.

America’s Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the fall meet at Aqueduct Racetrack on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Aqueduct Racetrack, and the best way to bet every race of the fall meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.