Fourstardave earned the nickname "The Sultan of Saratoga" for winning at least one race there over eight consecutive seasons in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Fast forward to today, and Spendthrift Farm's Further Ado is doing his best to replicate that legend, though in his case at Keeneland.
He illustrated his affinity for the Keeneland main track Oct. 31 in the $1 million Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1), improving to 3-for-3 at the Lexington oval by prevailing by a nose under Flavien Prat in a tight, head-bobbing photo with runner-up Owen Almighty.
"Yeah, I just told Flavien, '20 lengths, 11 lengths, nose. It all pays the same,'" trainer Brad Cox said on NBC moments after placing judges determined Further Ado had come out on top.
It didn't come easy—unlike the colt's earlier victories at Keeneland, when he rolled by 20 lengths and 11 lengths, respectively, in a maiden race last fall and in the Blue Grass Stakes (G1) this spring—but, as Cox noted, the colt still earned the $520,000 first-place prize.
Owen Almighty and third-place Full Serrano, the 2024 Dirt Mile winner, made him work in the two-turn contest. The two traded positions on the lead, with Full Serrano in front through splits of :22.67 and :46.14, and Owen Almighty leading with subsequent calls in 1:10.04 and 1:22.20.
But Further Ado, who tracked the pace on the inside in fourth for most of the first three-quarters of the race, found room exiting the final turn and kicked on strongly down the stretch. He led at the call that mattered most, the finish, with his nose just in front upon completing a mile in 1:34.50 on a fast track.
"I thought I was ahead of him, but (Owen Almighty) had a good bob," Prat said. "So, I didn't know."
Those who backed Further Ado to even-money favoritism had to wait a few minutes for the photo results and the payoffs. He returned $4.02 to win.
"That was quite a roller coaster of emotions to think we had lost and then to find out that we had won," Spendthrift Farm owner Eric Gustavson said. "That was unbelievable."
Gustavson said he wondered how Further Ado would fare with an inside trip and if the colt could secure the room necessary to launch his bid. The 3-year-old had lost his previous start when second in the Pennsylvania Derby (G1) with a similar inside stalking trip, unable to catch The Puma, who swooped to the lead while Further Ado was boxed in on the second turn.
Prat took the Dirt Mile for the third time after success with the Jerry Hollendorfer-trained Battle of Midway in 2017 and Nysos last year for trainer Bob Baffert.
The Dirt Mile victory was the second for Cox, who initially won the race in 2020 at Keeneland with Knicks Go .
Cox pre-entered Further Ado with first preference in the $7 million Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at 1 1/4 miles, but he and the Spendthrift team opted for the shorter, easier Dirt Mile.
"It was very important to try and make this horse a dual grade 1 winner at the age of 3," Cox said. "I think there is a little bit of a question mark with the distances with him. I wasn't convinced we wanted to tackle 1 1/4 miles against older horses just yet."
Saturday's Dirt Mile was a heartbreaking defeat for those associated with Owen Almighty, the 2025 Tampa Bay Derby (G3) winner. Many of his connections, watching the slow-motion replay, felt optimistic his number would be posted.
"It was a real close finish," jockey Luis Saez said. "I was not sure who won. The only thing I knew was that my horse was fighting and he tried really hard."
"He tried his ass off," added Hunter Rankin, president of Flying Dutchmen Breeding and Racing, which owns Owen Almighty. "I thought first watching it that he got beat. But then when they showed the replay, I thought he might have got his head down."
Full Serrano finished 2 lengths behind Owen Almighty in third.
With the win, Further Ado improved his career record to 5-2-1 in 11 starts and increased his earnings to $2,181,958. Whether he has the opportunity to add to that total won't be decided until the coming days.
Although previously announced for stud duty at Spendthrift in 2027, he could return to racing at 4. Gustavson said the Spendthrift team would discuss the options with Cox early next week. The possibility of another racing season is appealing, particularly given the potential for improvement with maturity, but Spendthrift Farm runs a stallion farm.
Further Ado, bred in Kentucky by John C. Oxley out of the grade 3-placed Sky Mesa mare Sky Dreamer, was a $550,000 purchase by Spendthrift Farm from the Six K's Training & Sales consignment to the 2025 Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale.
As a dual grade 1-winning son of elite stallion Gun Runner , who stands next year for a private fee at Three Chimneys Farm in Kentucky, Further Ado would surely appeal to breeders as a proven miler.
"Again, if we didn't have a stud farm and need a top stallion to come in, then it would be an easy choice to just run him back. So that's what makes it so difficult," Gustavson said.
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