A Thread of Blue claimed his first graded victory and third straight win in Saturday's GIII Palm Beach S. at Gulfstream Park. The dark bay rushed up to the front before settling in third behind fractions of :23.78 and :47.99 set by King Ottokar (Temple City) and 99-1 longshot Hard Belle (Hard Spun), while Casa Creed raced fourth under jockey John Velazquez. A Thread of BLue spurted into contention with a three-wide move leaving the backstretch, took a slim lead at the top of the lane and gamely held off Casa Creed to the wire.
“It was great to be able to lay third, second, third and then move when he wanted to move,” said winning trainer Kiaran McLaughlin. “He's a really nice horse and does everything right. He obviously loves it in Florida, winning three in a row here and we'll probably give him a little more time in between races this next time and we'll look at Derby day. I definitely think he can stretch out to a mile and a quarter, should be no problem. The mile and half might be a little far for him, but certainly we'll try a mile and a quarter.”
A Thread of Blue, a maiden winner in an off-turfer at Belmont last October, was third in the Nov. 4 Awad S. over the Aqueduct lawn before ending his juvenile campaign with a front-running allowance tally over the Palm Beach's course and trip Dec. 22. He cut back to a mile to score a 3 1/2-length victory in the Feb. 3 Dania Beach S. last time out.
Pedigree Notes:
Bred by Flaxman Holdings Limited, A Thread of Blue sold for $150,000 at the 2017 Keeneland September sale and was purchased by Leonard Green's D J Stable for $430,000 after working a furlong in :10 1/5 at last year's OBS March sale.
His dam, Enthused, also bred by Flaxman, and campaigned by the Niarchos family, won the 2000 G2 Lowther S. and G3 Princess Margaret S. She has a 2-year-old Union Rags colt named Fused and produced a filly by Temple City last year before being bred back to Karakontie (Jpn).
Enthused is a daughter of Magic of Life, who was purchased for $2.5 million as a weanling from the Newstead Farm dispersal in 1985 and won the 1988 G1 Coronation S. in the Niarchos colors. The mare was sold to Barronstown Stud for $610,000 at the 1998 Keeneland November sale.
Saturday, Gulfstream Park
PALM BEACH S.-GIII, $150,000, Gulfstream, 3-2, 3yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:41.93, fm.
1–A THREAD OF BLUE, 118, c, 3, by Hard Spun&log=">Hard Spun
1st Dam: Enthused (MGSW-Eng, $142,639), by Seeking the Gold
2nd Dam: Magic of Life, by Seattle Slew
3rd Dam: Larida, by Northern Dancer
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($150,000 Ylg '17 KEESEP;
$430,000 2yo '18 OBSMAR). O-Leonard C. Green; B-Flaxman
Holdings Limited (KY); T-Kiaran P. McLaughlin; J-Luis Saez.
$90,210. Lifetime Record: 7-4-1-1, $241,590.
Werk Nick Rating: A+.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Casa Creed, 118, c, 3, Jimmy Creed–Achalaya, by Bellamy
Road. ($15,000 Ylg '17 OBSWIN; $105,000 Ylg '17 KEESEP).
O-LRE Racing LLC & JEH Racing Stable LLC; B-Silver Springs
Stud, LLC (KY); T-William I. Mott. $29,100.
3–Louder Than Bombs, 118, c, 3, Violence–Orabella, by More
Than Ready. ($47,000 RNA Wlg '16 KEENOV; $37,000 Ylg '17
KEESEP). O-Sandra New; B-Hidden Brook Farm & Spruce Lane
Farm (KY); T-David Fawkes. $14,550.
Margins: 3/4, 1, 3/4. Odds: 0.50, 6.60, 3.50.
Also Ran: Art G Is Back, King Ottokar, Stirling Drive, Castlewood Terrace, Hard Belle. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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