For only the third time in modern Queen’s/King’s Plate history, potential horse owners can claim a Plate winner. On Friday at Gulfstream Park, SAFE CONDUCT, the 2021 Plate winner, drops to claiming for the first time as he is offered for $50,000 in race 8. The six-year-old gelding is 4-to-1 from post 1 with Irad Ortiz in the 1 1/16 mile turf race.
Owned by Robert Vukovich’s Wellspring Stables and trained by Phil Serpe, Safe Conduct came to Woodbine with two wins in six races on turf and dirt in New York. He was 3-to-1 in the Plate and under Ortiz, tracked the pace and then surged to the lead to win the 1 1/4 mile Canadian classic by a head. It was a lifetime moment for Ontario breeder Mitchell Kursner, who got to lead the son of Bodemeister to the Woodbine infield winner’s circle as both Vukovich and Serpe were absent.
Safe Conduct went on to finish second in the Gio Ponti Stakes, third in the Tropical Park Derby and second in the 2022 Grade 3 Monmouth Handicap. He has won once since the Plate when he took an allowance/optional event in May 2022 at Belmont with a 92 Beyer Figure.
Friday’s race is the first for Safe Conduct since November when he finished sixth in an allowance/optional race. The gelding has earned over $770,000 in his career.
Riptide Rock, who was second to Safe Conduct in the Plate, went on to be a hurdler through last fall. HC Holiday, third in that year’s Plate, won for $5,000 claiming recently at Tampa Bay Downs. But it is a rare occasion to see a Plate winner competing for claiming after the big win.
In July, 2012. BIG RED MIKE, the 2010 Plate winner, raced once for a claiming price – $75,000. It would the gelding’s final career race as the Terra Racing homebred was well beaten that day. He was retired to LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation in Hillsburgh, ON.
In 1986, BOMPAGO, owned by Carl Cardella and partners and trained by John Cardella, won for $10,000 claiming at Woodbine, three years after winning the $250,000 Plate by 4 1/2 lengths. A former claimer, Bompago had raced sporadically after his big win and was entered in the $10,000 claiming race following a layoff of almost one year. Bompago was not claimed and retired one race after that win for $10,000. He went on to be a successful show horse under the name of Carousel.
Incomplete race records make it difficult to find out if any other Plate winners raced for claiming after their big win.
Read about Safe Conduct’s Plate win here.
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