Et tu Campillo? Says Hail Cesaar.

The Cryptothaw Memorial Turf Stakes at Saratoga, New York turned into a horse race after all this week. The 2 year olds ran the 7 furlongs course in a speedy 1:24 3/5 (80) led to the wire by Campillo who held off a hard charging Hail Cesaar. Common Cause finished a close third and a fading El Bone Senor took fourth.

Campillo, the Storm Cat colt trained by rafita won the $50k first prize to more than double his earnings for the year. He now has two wins and a second in four starts and looks like a force to be reckoned with. It remains to be seen whether he can stretch out much more than 7 furlongs as he has a tendency to stay near the lead then grab it an hold on. .Rafita has had a very successful year in this stable and looks very capable of pointing him toward his next race and planning his long range schedule.

Hail Cesaar seemed to get caught back in traffic during the race and was flying at the finish but needed a few more yards of real estate to try and flag down Campillo. El Bone Senor tired badly after trying to hold off the winner in the backstretch and allowed Common Cause to get on the board. The biggest disappointment in the race was Fading Light who mostly faded throughout after some nice previous races.

Campillo will now get a well deserved rest, count his winnings and look forward to possible greatness.