Rained off the turf, scratched down to a six-horse race, with a distance change from 1 1/16 miles to one mile, the June 7 Pennine Ridge Stakes was downgraded to listed status pending review by the American Graded Stakes Committee. None of this mattered an iota to the flock of cheering Donegal Racing partners who gathered in the winner's circle at Saratoga Race Course to celebrate A. P. Kid's resounding 6 1/4-length victory.
A. P. Kid, a ridgling 3-year-old son of Honor A. P. , was making just his third career start in the $300,000 Pennine Ridge. He showed a strong preference for the turf in a March 22 maiden special weight turf race at Gulfstream Park which he won by 2 1/2 lengths in his second career start for trainer Todd Pletcher. That victory followed a less-than-auspicious debut when he suffered a 30 3/4-length defeat in a Feb. 15 dirt race.
John Velazquez kept A. P. Kid in second position behind favored Mi Bago who set an uncontested pace through fractions of :23.64, :46.92, and 1:11.18, over the muddy (sealed) track. A. P. Kid, guided several paths wide into the stretch, motored past Mi Bago inside the furlong marker. Mi Bago held for runner-up honors, 3 1/2 lengths in front of Golden Channel who was followed under the wire by Noble Confessor, Bulldoze, and Thirteen Colonies.
The winner returned $8.80 and ran the mile in 1:36.83.
Jerry Crawford, the CEO of Donegal Racing, said, "He had been on the turf once and he had been on the dirt once. His dirt race was abysmal. His turf race was elegant, so naturally we wanted to bring him back on the turf. But watching him today, I mean, how do you say what he is? Other than pretty damn good."
Pletcher said the Kentucky-bred was training so well on the dirt, he was inclined to give it another go when the Pennine Ridge was taken off the turf Saturday morning.
"He's a colt we've always thought a lot of," Pletcher said. "He just recently disappointed us in his debut, so we switched to the grass and it worked out, but he had been training so well on the dirt that we decided to give him another try. We were a little unsure of the sloppy conditions, but we certainly felt like we needed to take a chance."
Donegal Racing bought A. P. Kid, bred by Parks Investment Group, for $275,000 from the Lane's End consignment at the 2023 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. A. P. Kid is out of the War Front mare Lady Mamba and is her second foal and first stakes winner. Sire Honor A. P. stands at Lane's End near Versailles, Ky., for a fee of $10,000 this year.
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