Saturday's $30,000 Broadway Preview Stake provided a slight upset and the first sub-1:50 mile of the season at Balmoral Park as James Gorman's Well To Do Guru rallied in the closing yards to win by three-quarters of a length in a blistering 1:49.3
.
Getting away in mid-pack as Thisbigdogwilfight (John De Long) and The Quiet Mon (Rick Dane Jr.) battled through a tough opening quarter in :27.1, driver Casey Leonard was more than content to stay away from the duel taking place up front.
The quick pace continued to the half-mile mark with Thisbigdogwilfight showing the way by that station in :54.3. A live outer flow had already started to develop at that point and Well To Do Guru was sitting in the perfect spot as he raced second over behind the cover of a hard charging My Boy Luke (Robert Smolin).
Battling hard around the turn, Thisbigwilfight was all out to stave off the first over bid of My Boy Luke as the two raced side by side past the three-quarter-mile mark in 1:22.1. Well To Do Guru was lurking right behind the leaders in third and was getting set to tip three-wide off his cover as the field turned for the money.
As the battled raged on between the top two through the lane, Leonard maneuvered Well To Do Guru to the far outside where he began to swallow up the leaders. Gaining ground with every stride, the six-year-old son of Richess Hanover bulled his way by the embattled leaders in the closing yards to post his second win in 11 starts this year. Big Daddy Woo Woo (Mike Oosting) continued his amazing rise to stardom with a big come from behind second-place finish while My Boy Luke gamely held on for third.
Sent off as the third choice in the wagering the Terry Leonard trainee returned $11.20, $6.60 and $5.80 while pushing his career earnings over the $250,000 mark.
The stakes action continues on Sunday night at Balmoral Park with a total of 15 Illinois conceived and foaled two-year-old pacing colts battling in a pair of $8,000 Wicked Brew Stake splits, which have been carded as Races 6 and 7 on the 11-race card. Post time for the opener on Sunday is 6:30 p.m. (central).
(Balmoral Park)