Turf or dirt, it doesn’t seem to matter for exciting colt Tiz The Bomb as the Phoenix Thoroughbreds owned colt grabbed a maiden Stakes success at Kentucky Downs.
Arriving off the back of a 14 plus length victory on the main track at Ellis Park, Kenny McPeek’s charge proved to be just at home on the green stuff producing an impressive late surge to take the Juvenile Mile Stakes. Ever-present pilot Brian Hernandez Junior was in the irons to guide the exciting son of Spendthrift’s Hit It A Bomb to a record of two wins in three starts.
Breaking smartly from the gates, Hernandez settled his mount in midfield as the leaders set a decent early tempo. For just a moment, it looked as if those front runners were getting away as the field entered the long sweeping turn for home, but Hernandez was alive to that and found a willing partner to work with. Tiz The Bomb responded to his rider and moved in contention at the top of the stretch. The pair made the race-winning move by switching to the inside and they rolled up the rail to hit the lead at the right time and claim the $500,000 race.
“He ran well today, the first time on the grass,” Hernandez said. “He put us in the spot and traveled the whole way around there looking like a winner, and he got the job done. They’ve been bragging on him over at the barn about how well he’s been working, and they were kind of tipping their hands about this performance. (Jockey) Robby Albarado has been working this horse in the mornings, and he said that all of the sudden he turned the corner going the right way, and he showed it today.”
This victory completed a memorable Labor Day weekend for the Phoenix Thoroughbreds team giving the Dubai-based owners a 2nd Juvenile Stakes win in as many days following Double Thunder’s win in the Sapling Stakes at Monmouth Park.