Giant Basil, Tahoe Warrior and Warrior Within completed the order. Act of God, Malameeze and Sacred Light scratched.(Chart, Equibase)
Patrick Biancone has been a big supporter of Polytrack and Stream Cat, who trained on the surface at Turfway Park, won the $114,300 Crown Royal American Turf (gr. IIIT) at Churchill Downs Friday.Many handicappers believe horses who like turf also like Polytrack. Stream Cat certainly supports that theory, having won three times in six starts – twice on grass and once on Polytrack. He won the With Anticipation last year on the Saratoga lawn as well as the Kentucky Cup Juvenile (gr. III) at Turfway. He then ran third in the Breeders' Futurity (gr. I) and eighth in the Bessemer Trust Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I). The Crown Royal was his first start of 2006.Go Between took the lead out of the gate in the 1 1/16-mile race, but Tahoe Warrior was rank and drug Garrett Gomez to the lead. Julien Leparoux was content to let Stream Cat settle into last in the six-horse field.Tahoe Warrior went a quarter in :24.76 and half in :48.84 before Gaelic Storm, under Rene Douglas, took the lead. After six furlongs in 1:12.92, favored Go Between and Edgar Prado made the lead. But Stream Cat came rolling while four wide under left-handed urging from Leparoux and wore down the 7-5 favorite inside the sixteenth pole to win by a neck.It was the second turf stakes win of the day for Leparoux and trainer Patrick Biancone, who earlier scored with Man of Illusion in the Aegon Turf Sprint (gr. IIIT).Stream Cat, by Black Minnaloushe, is owned by Fabien Ouaki, Bobby Hurley, and Jack Goldthorpe. The 3-year-old colt was bred in Kentucky by Matthews Breeding and Racing.The victory, Stream Cat's third in six starts, was worth $70,158, increasing the dark bay's earnings to $223,828.The winner, who ran the distance in 1:42.27, paid $10.20, $4.20, and $3.80. Go Between, ridden by Edgar Prado, was worth $2.80 and $2.40 and Gaelic Storm, with Rene Douglas aboard, returned $2.60 to show.