Not that there’s ever a sure thing in horse racing, one of the races in which many fans and gamblers were expecting to be an easy single was Cogburn in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) at Del Mar Nov. 2.
It looked that way for the first half-mile, but inside the final furlong the speedster hit the wall and opened up a free-for-all to the wire. As the closers rushed on by, it was Mrs. Fitriani Hay’s Starlust who emerged victorious at 33-1.
“This horse has been knocking on the door all year,” said winning jockey Rossa Ryan. “It’s just great to see him do it on the big stage. He’s been a bridesmaid. But brilliant, unbelievable performance.”
Jockey Rossa Ryan celebrates Stardust’s Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint victory
Ryan found himself last of 11 in the early stages of the race while Cogburn blazed on the lead through fractions of :21.59 and :43.72. Patient on the rail, Ryan picked off horses as they entered the stretch and was waiting for a hole to open.
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“Luck was on our side, (the hole) opened so well,” Ryan said. “By the time it did open, I was there, I had the horse.”
As Cogburn grew leg weary, he drifted out into Starlust’s path which created a chain reaction. Isivunguvungu got the worst of it and had to check as Starlust asserted his path and pushed on to the lead. He hit the wire a neck ahead of Motorious and Ag Bullet to claim victory. He completed the distance in :55.92 and paid $69.20.
An inquiry was held into the stretch run, but no change was made by the stewards.
The victory was Starlust’s third in 10 starts this season, and first in graded company since winning the Sirenia Stakes (G3) at Kempton Park last year. Third in the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1T) at Santa Anita Park, trainer Ralph Beckett was eager to bring him back for the World Championships.
“The (important) point about why we came here, it was around a bend,” Beckett said. “He was very good on the bend last year in the Juvenile Turf (Sprint). We really felt that if he was able to hold onto their coattails, that would play for him.”
It was Beckett’s second win in the Breeders’ Cup, having previously won the Breeders’ Cup Marathon with Irish-bred Muhannak in 2008. Ryan and Beckett have had quite the month, having won the Oct. 6 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (G1) with Bluestocking .
“The reality is that when you’re in it, it’s very hard to enjoy it,” Beckett said. “I think probably we will enjoy it at the end of the year.”
Winning connections celebrate Starlust’s victory in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar
A 3-year-old son of Zoustar , Starlust was bred in Great Britain by Branton Court Stud. Owned by Hay, he was a $63,852 purchase by D Farrington in the 2022 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale Book 2. He is 6-3-3 in 18 starts for earnings of $915,137. No decision has been made as to whether he will race at 4.
As for Cogburn, his Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen simply summed up the emotions created by the fifth-place finish: “That sucked.”
Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. said he used Cogburn a little too much early after not-the-best beginning.
“I just let him be him,” Ortiz said. “I didn’t want to fight too much with him. I turned for home, I asked him to give me a good kick, but they went by me.”
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