Revolutionary rallies to win Pimlico Special

Baltimore, MD (SportsNetwork.com) – Favored Revolutionary put on a furious rally down the stretch Friday to win the $300,000 Pimlico Special for older horses at Pimlico Race Course.

The 1 3/16-mile stakes is conducted at the same distance as Saturday’s 139th Preakness Stakes.

Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith, Revolutionary was sent off as the 2-1 favorite in the nine-horse field. Stablemate Golden Lad was 6-1 with Moreno the 5-2 second pick.

Revolutionary, owned by WinStar Farm, trailed around the first turn and up the backstretch as 5-1 third choice Valid set the pace and took the field into the far turn.

Valid still had the lead on the final turn as Revolutionary began his rally from last from an outside position.

At the furlong pole, Cat Burglar had the lead with Revolutionary mounting a furious rally down the middle of the track. The favorite got the lead yards before the wire and posted a neck win over 10-1 longshot Prayer for Relief.

Cat Burglar held on for third followed by Moreno, Valid, Bourbon Courage, Carve, Golden Lad. Major King lost contact with the field.

The time for the Pimlico Special was 1:55.99. The track was listed as fast for the race after drying out from earlier rain.

The victory goes along with Pletcher-filly Stopchargingmaria’s win in the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes 60 minutes earlier and also is Smith’s first winning ride in the Special.

Revolutionary adds $180,000 to his earnings which now total $1,347,600. The four-year-old has five wins in 12 lifetime starts.

This year, Revolutionary won an allowance race in January at Gulfstream Park before getting back to stakes company. However, he came in a disappointing seventh behind Lea in the Donn Handicap at Gulfstream on Feb. 9. He bounced back a bit by getting second, less than a length behind Will Take Charge on April 12 in the Oaklawn Handicap.

As a 3-year-old, Revolutionary posted consecutive wins in Aqueduct’s Withers Stakes and Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds. He was third in the Kentucky Derby and fifth in the Belmont Stakes before being sidelined for the remainder of 2013.

Revolutionary paid $6.40, $3.60 and $3.20. Prayer for Relief returned $7.20 and $4.00, and Cat Burglar paid $4.60 to show.

Categorized in: Horses