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Red Knight and jockey Horacio Karamanos win first Colonial Cup at Colonial Downs
Trinity Farm’s Red Knight returned from an 11-month layoff to score their ninth lifetime victory Wednesday in the inaugural $150,000 Colonial Cup turf test at Colonial Downs in New Kent, Va. The stakes drew a field of 11 who battled 1 1/2 miles plus the Secretariat Turf Course and was the first stakes race in Colonial history to be contested at this distance.
The 8-year-old Pure Prize gelding crossed the finish line 1 1/2 lengths the best and pushed his career bankroll to $893,258. The winner is trained by Michael Maker and ridden by Horacio Karamanos.
Red Knight and Another Mystery had to level off shortly after the start when Nathan Detroit cut heels with another horse and lost his rider, William Humphrey. Both horses stayed in the middle of the pack for the one mile distance while betting the favorite cellist and La Lune battled for the lead.
Karamanos put Red Knight into fourth heading into the final, came out and passed Another Mystery and the top two en route to victory in 2:27.31.
“I had a good break and saved some ground early,” Karamanos said. “The trainer told me the horse was ready to win, so save some ground and wait for your moment. In the second corner he wanted to go but I wouldn’t let him go. I tried to hold him back as best I could. At the top of the stretch, I finally let go of him. He kicked me nice. He has a nice, long stride so I just let him go. J ‘ve won many races at 1 1/2 miles,” added Colonial’s greatest runner of all time. “In my country we race long distances so I love that. I am very confident when running long distances.
Red Knight actually set the Gulfstream Park track record at the two-mile distance in 2018 when he won the $100,000 H. Allen Jerkens Stakes.
Trinity Farm owner Tom Egan was almost as confident as his jockey ahead of Monday’s Cup.
“I had high expectations because this horse is a terrific racehorse,” he said. “Mike Maker thought he was going to run a really big race and he did. He was coming out of a long layoff. He needed every moment of this layoff. It was in poor condition last September. He came back and came back all the way at the age of eight. He has a great taste for racing. We raised him and we owned his mother,” Egan added. “We love horse racing and it’s been very kind to us.”
Team Block’s Another Mystery finished second and Bruton Street’s Snap Decision finished third.
Pilot Humphrey suffered a right elbow laceration which was stitched up on the track. He did not go to the hospital.
Colonial Downs continues its racing season on Monday, August 1 with the first post at 1:45 p.m. ET. The featured race is the $100,000 Housebuster Overnight Handicap.
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