For the second time in just over 24 hours, KARAKONTIE registered a stakes winner when Sugoi won the Louisville Stakes (G3) in his second graded stakes start.
Racing on the Churchill Downs turf, the gelding shot to the lead in the 1 ½ mile race and never looked back. He raced comfortably around the track with his ears pricked under Julien Leparoux with no challenges incurred until the far turn.
Two runners made a go at him at that point, and he faced his toughest battle in midstretch but was able to reclaim the margin he had previously lost to win by 1 ¼ lengths.
#7 SUGOI with jockey @JulienLeparoux at 19/1 goes to the front, sets the factions and holds on to take the Grade 3 Louisville Stakes @ChurchillDowns.
Trainer: Mike Maker
Owner: Paradise Farms Corp & David Staudacher#TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/Y92qkugoDu— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) May 19, 2024
It has been a banner year for Sugoi, who has won all four of his starts in 2024 at three different tracks. Now trained by Mike maker for Paradise Farms and David Staudacher, Sugoi is the winner of 10 of 27 starts with eight other top three finishes for $573,433 in earnings.
Sugoi was bred in Kentucky by Normandy Farm out of the Devil His Due mare Timeless Spirit.
That mare is the dam of five winners from five to race and is a full sister to the stakes winning Gallant Fighter with two siblings also producing stakes performers. Timeless Spirit is also out of the 18-time stakes winner Spirit of Fighter.
This victory came one day after KARAKONTIE saw his Grade 1 winning daughter romp in her seasonal debut in the Hilltop Stakes at Pimlico on Friday.