The 4-year-old gelding Nice Not Nice and jockey Gabriel Saez drew off in the stretch for a 1 1/4-length victory over Mr. Recio in Ellis Park’s $43,000 turf allowance race on the special holiday card. The victory was a testament to patience, as the hard-trying, check-collecting gelding finally knocked out his first-level allowance condition on his 17th attempt.
“Better nice than not nice,†quipped Buff Bradley, who trains Nice Not Nice for Ann Bakhaus’ Keene Ridge Racing. “We knew he could run on turf or dirt. It seemed like lately he was doing a little better on the dirt. We were trying to keep him there, but there really wasn’t a dirt race we could go in. So he finally got through this condition. He’s a hard-knocking horse. Every time he runs hard. You can count on him running his race. Gabe fits him pretty well because you’ve got to just stay busy on him, too.â€
With Mr Darcy streaking out to a nine-length lead, Nice Not Nice and Saez settled into third before rallying through the stretch to take command while covering the mile over firm turf in 1:34.05, powering the last eighth-mile in 11.70 seconds. Nice Not Nice paid $5.80 to win as the favorite in the field of six horses 3-year-olds and up, with Mr Darcy hanging on for third by a head over second-choice Killeen.
“When the 3 horse got way out there, I was a little concerned,†the Churchill Downs-based Bradley said of Mr Darcy. “I thought, ‘Man, he’s running out there easy all alone.’ But then when he went wide on the turn and I saw Gabe coming, I said, ‘It’s hard to run this horse down in the lane. Because he’s going to run his butt off.’â€
Convict Pike, the 5-2 program favorite, was scratched, as was Dapper Sam, entered to run only if the race was taken off the turf.
“I really like him more on the dirt, to be honest with you,†Saez said of Nice Not Nice. “But today, with those two horses scratching, I thought we had a really good chance. He broke sharp; the one on the front end went on, and I just saved him for the end. When they went to running, he finished up as well. When he ran on the grass before, he didn’t win but he was running well. Today he got the job done.â€
Nice Not Nice had four victories in 22 starts going into Wednesday: a $16,000 maiden-claiming race two years ago at Ellis Park, two starter-allowance races and a $50,000 claiming race at Churchill Downs two starts back. He was second in an allowance race at Churchill in his last start.
Overall, the bay son of Twirling Candy is 5-6-0 in 23 starts, earning $151,819 with the $25,800 payday.
Bradley said Nice Not Nice might show up in a stakes somewhere, perhaps even the $100,000 Kentucky Downs Preview Tourist Mile on turf Aug. 5. And if rain should force the stakes on to the main track, that works, too.
“Any time it wants to come off the turf, we’ll take it,†Bradley said cheerfully
Jockeys Edgar Morales and Jack Gilligan won two races apiece, with Morales taking the first on Paper Dollie for owner-trainer Jason McCutchen and the third on American Alphabet for trainer John Hancock and owners Gatewood Bell and Ken Donworth.
American Alphabet was a hunch bet on a couple of fronts: Having American in the 3-year-old filly’s name on Independence Day and the fact that the race was named in memory of Bivian B Hancock, Hancock’s mom who for 50 years was a beloved school-bus driver in Henderson County, as well as a horse owner. Of course, the other hunch was that American Alphabet was in a $5,000 maiden-claiming race after finishing a close third for $16,000 in her prior start. Even so, she paid a solid $10.60 as the third choice, with Bivian Hancock’s relatives crowding in the winner’s circle presentation.
Gilligan took the seventh on William Sparks’ Vandelay for trainer Ron Moquett and the ninth on Hidden Brook Farm’s Drift Away for trainer Bret Calhoun.
Though the field field of the fifth race for 2-year-olds scratched down to five horses, KRA Stud Farm’s first-time starter Knicks Go was most impressive. The son of the WinStar Farm stallion Paynter broke on the rail and led virtually all the way under James Graham for a 3 1/2-length score over 13-1 Artaban. Favored World was another neck back in third. Lexington-based Ben Colebrook trains Knicks Go.
Racing continues at Ellis Park on Thursday, with a 12:50 first post.
