Ontario-sired and -bred FULL SCREEN won his first stakes race since leaving Canada on December 27 when he flew to a five-length score in the $150,000 Queens County, a nine-furlong route for three-year-olds and up, at Aqueduct Racetrack in New York.
Trained by dual Eclipse Award-winner Brad Cox for Sanford Goldfarb, Steven Speranza, Crown Stable and Michael Greenberg, the six-year-old son of Spring Farm’s stallion Big Screen earned his third career stakes win and first since the restricted Lake Ontario in November 2022 at Woodbine Racetrack. Full Screen was claimed for $100,000 in July at Saratoga Race Course and is now two-for-four for current connections, entering off a six-length optional claiming win over course and distance on November 20 that earned a career and field-best 100 Beyer Speed Figure.
Full Screen and jockey Manny Franco exited post 3 and settled in third well off the pace set by Film Star, who was hustled to take command while pressured by the hard-sent Cooke Creek through an opening quarter-mile in 23.18 seconds over the good dirt.
“I don’t expect that pace early on, but it was good for me because I sat right off them and when they stopped, my horse just took off,” said Franco, who earned his third win on the card.
Film Star kept a half-length in front of Cooke Creek down the backside with seven lengths back to Full Screen through the half-mile in 47.20. Full Screen narrowed the gap approaching the second turn, and after three-quarters elapsed in 1:12.90, Franco located a window inside of the dueling pacesetters and his charge quickly took command.
“My horse saw the daylight, and he just jumped on the bridle, and I said, ‘OK, let’s go for it,’” Franco said. “After that, I just kept a hold and waited and waited a little bit longer and as soon as he switched leads in the stretch, he just took off again. I was full of horse. I didn’t want to get there too early because sometimes before he liked to hang a little bit, but he’s doing so good right now. He keeps improving.”
Once Full Screen made the front, he opened up to lead by 5 1/2 lengths at the stretch call over Cooke Creek who ran on under Flavien Prat. There was no doubt in the late stages, as Full Screen cruised to a five-length victory over Cooke Creek in a final time of 1:51.26.
He earned his second straight triple-digit Beyer Speed Figure, and highest of his career, a 101.
“He was pulling me. He didn’t really care about the kickback, the mud. At the three-eighths pole, he saw the space and the daylight, and he just went for it,” Franco said. “I didn’t stop his momentum and after that at the quarter pole, when he switched leads, he goes on again. It’s the best feeling.”
Bourbon Day finished 8 1/4 lengths back of Cooke Creek in third, with the Cox-trained Kinetic completing the superfecta. Film Star rounded out the order of finish. Classicist was scratched.
Bred by Dr. John Brown’s Spring Farm, Full Screen, out of the Langfuhr mare Lyndenshire, was originally a $9,500 purchase at the 2020 CTHS Canadian-bred Yearling Sale by Julie Belhumeur for owner Nidel Charfi. Gary Barber, Pantofel and Wachtel Stables bought the gelding in the spring of 2023 and he won two races and was stakes placed for those interests.
Lyndenshire, bred by Spring Farm, is from the tough stakes-winning mare LONDON SNOW, by Trajectory, and she earned over $500,000. London Snow was bred by Gardiner Farms and is from the very good Bold Executive mare Muriel, who produced 10 winners. Muriel’s half-sister Rose of Lancaster was a stakes winner for Gardiner.
Interestingly, Lyndenshire’s yearling of 2025, a colt by Paynter, was bought from the CTHS Ontario sale for $50,000 by Gary Barber. The colt is named Paint Me a Picture.
Full Screen earned $82,500 in the victory while improving his record to 36-7-5-9 and boosting his earnings to $634,043. He returned $3.64 for a $2 win bet as the post-time favourite.
-with files from NYRA media
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