In a thrilling stretch duel, Bridlewood Farm training graduate Proxy ran down West Will Power inside the final sixteenth to win the 148th running of the $750,000 Clark S. (G1) at Churchill Downs on Friday, Nov. 25.
A Godolphin homebred, Proxy registered his first stakes win in the prestigious Clark. The near-millionaire earner was a top 3-year-old in 2021, finishing second in a pair of Road to the Kentucky Derby prep races at Fair Grounds—the Lecomte S. (G3) and the Risen Star S. (G2). Proxy kicked off his 4-year-old campaign this season with runner-up efforts in the New Orleans Classic (G2) and the Blame S., and he finished third in the Ben Ali S. (G3) and the Stephen Foster S. (G2) prior to his Clark triumph.
The $458,970 winner’s share of the Clark purse raised Proxy’s career bankroll to $971,220 and he is now a winner in four of 13 lifetime starts for trainer Michael Stidham. Proxy covered the 1 1/8 miles over a fast track in 1:48.89 under jockey Joel Rosario and defeated West Will Power by three-quarters of a length at the wire.
“I was a little shocked he showed as much speed as he did,” Stidham said. “That could have been because of how fresh he was coming off the layoff. We had this race as a target when we gave him a break following the Stephen Foster. It’s very special for him to get his first graded stakes win as a Grade 1.”
Proxy is a son of Tapit out of the multiple Grade 1-winning Include mare Panty Raid, an earner of more than $1 million during her outstanding racing career.
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