Trainer Wesley Ward flies to England June 5 for the upcoming Royal Ascot meet, days after his usual assortment of speedy 2-year-olds traveled overseas. Yet, Ward didn’t empty his juvenile cupboard.
He won the $144,000 Astoria Stakes June 3 at Belmont Park with Gayla Rankin’s Happy Soul , and then June 4 added another lucrative win when Peter Leidel’s Overbore captured the $139,500 Tremont Stakes at Belmont.
Overbore, dk b/br, 2/c
Speightstown — Galina Point, by Saffir
Owner: Leidel, Peter
Breeder: WinStar Farm, LLC (KY)
Trainer: Wesley A. Ward
Jockey: Joel Rosario
Information provided by Equibase at time of entry.
Pedigree Notes
Speightstown stands at WinStar Farm LLC for $90,000 (2021).
Sale History
KEESEP2020 • $275,000 • Consignor: Warrendale Sales, agent • Buyer: Cromwell Bloodstock.
The lone maiden in the four-horse Tremont, reduced by two following the scratches of longshot Rising Outlaw and 1-2 morning-line favorite Little Drama , Overbore defaulted into 3-5 favoritism. He showed he warranted the public’s support against modest competition by stalking dueling front-runners Baytown Frosty and Trust Our Journey , passing them, and outlasting runner-up Kavod by three-quarters of a length. He raced 5 1/2 furlongs on a muddy, drying-out track in 1:05.44 following splits of :21.99 and :45.58.
“I was setting up in the perfect spot. When I said go, he was there for me,” said winning rider Joel Rosario. “He is very talented. He didn’t break that well, but he came with a nice run at the end, so that was a very good performance.”
Kavod, who dove to the inside in search of room in early stretch, was 2 1/2 lengths in front of Trust Our Journey in third. Baytown Frosty faded to a distant fourth.
Ward, reached by telephone in Detroit, where he was obtaining a passport so his son could fly with him to England on Saturday, said it might have been a blessing that Overbore was slower to develop than his more precocious runners. The Speightstown colt picked up needed experience, running third first out at Keeneland April 18 after breaking poorly, and later was second in a turf maiden race at Churchill Downs May 21. At Churchill, he was caught by a nose on the wire after not putting away his competition when in front with a furlong to run.
“I just think for right now in his career, dirt is his game. I’ll give him a little time to go to the Saratoga Special, and hopefully, he’ll go on to develop to be the horse we bought him for,” he said of the $275,000 yearling purchase.
The Saratoga Special Presented by Miller Lite (G2) is a $200,000 stakes race for juveniles Aug. 14 at 6 1/2 furlongs at Saratoga Race Course.
Bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm, Overbore is out of the Saffir mare Galina Point , a multiple stakes winner in restricted Canadian-bred company who also placed in a Canadian grade 3. He is the first foal out of his dam, who also has a yearling filly by More Than Ready. Gatewood Bell’s Cromwell Bloodstock bought him at the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale from the Warrendale Sales consignment.
Overbore ($3.30) earned $82,500 Friday to increase his bankroll to $108,500.
Ward expressed delight for Leidel, mentioning that Friday’s victory came on the owner’s birthday.
“His daughter was in the picture. So it was a hell of a birthday present,” Ward said.
Courtesy of the Bloodhorse
