Hush of a Storm rallies to win Battaglia, climb into top 20 of Kentucky Derby standings
Hush of a Storm rallied to win the $100,000 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes at Turfway Park in Florence on Friday night, earning 10 Kentucky Derby qualifying points and moving into the top 20 of the Road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard.
It’s the third straight victory for the son of Creative Cause. The William Morey trainee went off as the 6-1 third betting choice under jockey Santiago Gonzalez. To add a little intrigue, after pulling out the victory Hush of a Storm’s team had to endure a stewards’ inquiry.
Hush of a Storm was next to last in the 11-horse field rounding the first turn of the 1 1/16-mile contest over Turfway’s synthetic course. He steadily picked off rivals through 6 furlongs, then Santiago moved him to the outside heading for home.
Hush of a Storm was best among a group of four fighting to the finish. He prevailed by 1 1/2 lengths over Like the King, who earned four Kentucky Derby qualifying points. Even-money favorite Gretzky the Great earned two qualifying points for the third-place finish, while Hard Rye Guy finished fourth to earn one point.
Hard Rye Guy got squeezed on the rail heading for home and was forced to retreat, prompting the inquiry. After a 13-minute review, stewards ruled no foul occurred and the order of finish was upheld.
Hush of a Storm won in a final time of 1:44.00 and paid $15.40. After a poor debut last fall at Churchill Downs, he has been perfect in three contests over Turfway’s synthetic main track. Friday marked his first stakes victory after being purchased by the Joseph P. Morey Jr. Revocable Trust for $75,000 as a 2-year-old last year at auction.
Next up on the Kentucky Derby trail for Turfway Park is the Jeff Ruby Steaks on March 27. The winner of the Jeff Ruby will earn 100 qualifying points and essentially lock up a spot in the Run for the Roses on May 1.
