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Kinetic Sky victorious in rain-soaked Stymie

by Lynne Snierson

Under a heady ride from Jose Lezcano, Kinetic Sky proved best in a field of eight hard-knocking older horses to take Saturday’s Listed $150,000 Stymie on a sloppy and sealed racing strip, at Aqueduct Racetrack.

Trained by Rick Dutrow, Jr. and owned by the partnership of Sandy Goldfarb, Alan Kahn, David Tanzman, and Steven Speranza, the 6-year-old son of Runhappy took over in a final stages of the one-turn mile to prevail in a four-horse battle to the wire in the final time of 1:37.08. Dispatched at 9-2, Kinetic Sky finished a nose in front of pacesetter Quality Chic while his Dutrow-trained stablemate and 9-5 favorite Petulante was another half-length back in third. Coastal Mission, Double Crown, Castle Chaos, Iron Works and Laughing Boy completed the order of finish.

Breaking from the inside post, Lezcano guided Kinetic Sky off the rail and to the outside where he found more comfortable going. Racing four-wide down the backstretch and through the bend, the rider asked his charge near the three-eighths pole and then placed him 10-wide at the head of the stretch. Kinetic Sky took up the challenge and then dug down deep through the lane and got his nose down at the wire.

“He gave me a very good race. Rick had him ready and the horse was there for me the whole way. I got kind of a tough [post] position inside today and when I asked him to go and get position outside, he was there for me and went on to finish up," said Lezcano, who won the Busher earlier on the card with Jody’s Pride. “My horse was always there. He broke good and we were sitting well where we sat.”

Quality Chic, trained by David Jacobson and ridden by Ramon Vazquez, led the field through splits of 23.86 seconds, 46.64, 1:11.50, and 1:24.17 before giving way late.

"I got a very good trip. I knew where to put my horse. My horse ran really, really good. They just beat me there at the last jump. I don't really have any excuses for my horse. My horse got on the lead and got it very easy, and when I asked him, he responded very well. The other horse that beat me [Kinetic Sky] just was a little bit better," said Vazquez.

Kinetic Sky was haltered for $62,500 in April and has now won three times for his current connections, including a pair of optional-claiming scores here last year. He entered the Stymie from a third place finish in the Grade 3 Toboggan to Super Chow, who came back to capture Saturday’s Grade 3 Tom Fool Handicap here.

Kinetic Sky, who is out of the Sky Mesa mare Sky America and became a first-time stakes winner in 27 lifetime starts, returned $11.80 for a $2 wager. The $450,000 purchase at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling Sale was bred in Kentucky by Elm Tree Farm, Curt Leake, Time Will Tell, and Warren Harang.

Live racing resumes Sunday at Aqueduct with an eight-race card. First post is 1:20 p.m. Eastern.

America’s Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the winter 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 winter meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.