Canada’s reigning Horse of the Year MIGHTY HEART set the pace in the Grade 3 Harlan’s Holiday Stakes at Gulfstream Park on Dec. 18 in his first run at the Florida track and battled on for third place in the $150,000 race at 1 1/16 miles. FEARLESS, a giant son of Ghostzapper trained by Todd Pletcher, powered to victory and has likely paved his way to a start in the upcoming $3 million Pegasus World Cup next month.

Fearless was making his second start off a six-month layoff while bouncing back from his first loss at Gulfstream – a close-up second-place finish in the Nov. 21 Miami Gardens overnight handicap.

The 5-year-old son of Ghostzapper broke cleanly to track the pace set by Mighty Heart and pressed by Blue Steel along the backstretch. Following a half-mile in :47.76 seconds, Saez asked Fearless for run, and the Kentucky-bred gelding responded by making a three-wide sweep to pull alongside Mighty Heart at the top of the stretch and continue on to win comfortably under Luis Saez.

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