Raven Pass won the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot on Saturday.

September 29, 2008

Raven Pass won the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot on Saturday. Beating Henrythenavigator for a boost heading into the Breeders Cup.

Jimmy Fortune rose the 3-year-old colt.

Horse, trainer and jockey finally got it right all at the same time, Ravens Pass trainer John Gosden said. The plan is now to go to the Breeders Cup. Whether that is for the Mile or the Classic we will have to see.

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Zanjero wins Kentucky Cup Classic.

Zanjero used a determined stretch run to pull away from the two favorites and stay clear of two long shots Saturday in the $350,000 Kentucky Cup.

The win earned the 4-year-old colt a trip to the Breeders Cup series next month at Santa Anita.

Trained by Steve Asmussen, the nations leading trainer, and ridden by Shaun Bridgmohan, Zanjero ran 1 1-8 miles in 1:49.27 to beat Extreme Supreme by 1 1/2 lengths. Canela was another 4 lengths back in third.

That horse ran great, said Asmussen, who watched the race on TV at Belmont Park, where he saddled Jockey Gold Cup winner Curlin. This horse is going to the Breeders Cup Dirt Mile.

The win in the Grade 2 Classic put Zaneros lifetime earnings over $1.6 million.

Zanjero took the lead from pacesetters Honest Man and Extreme Supreme at the top of the stretch.

The race went just as I hoped it would, said owner Ron Winchell. He broke clean and was close to the pace. He has a good late kick as long as he doesnt use it too early.
The 8-5 co-favorites, Honest Man and Stream Cat, faded to finish fourth and last in the six-horse field. Jockey Terry Thompson said Honest Man didnt appear to like Turfways Polytrack surface.

Hes a real big, heavy horse and he pounds the ground kind of hard, Thompson said.

Zanjero paid $7.40, $3.80 and $3.20. Extreme Supreme returned $10 and $5. Canela paid $6.60 to show.

Woodbine-based Fatal Bullet, winner in six of seven starts this year, set a track record in the Kentucky Cup Sprint, one of three graded stakes on the undercard. Fatal Bullet, trained by Reade Baker and bound for the Breeders Cup Sprint, ran six furlongs in 1:08.03 on Turfways Polytrack, which is similar to the synthetic surface at Santa Anita.

Trainer Kelly Breen said Kentucky Cup Juvenile winner West Side Bernie, now 2-for-2, also is headed for the Breeders Cup series.

Bear Now, trained by Baker, won the Kentucky Cup Distaff. Eurico Da Silva rode both of Bakers winners.