Paul Heist's Flamethrowintexan, making his first career start on turf, set all the pace Saturday as he won the $141,250 Bay Meadows Breeders' Cup Handicap (G3) at Bay Meadows Race Course.
The five-year-old Way West (Fr) gelding, with jockey Ricky Frazier in the irons, raced exclusively on dirt in his first 24 lifetime starts before trainer Jim Penney entered him in the about 1 1/8-mile turf stakes.
The chestnut came out of the gate and went to the front, going a half-mile in :47.05 and six furlongs in 1:11.12, keeping a comfortable one-length lead over Now Victory. In the stretch, Now Victory began tiring as 1.70-to-1 favorite Fantastic Spain began closing from fourth to challenge the leader, but Flamethrowintexan dug in gamely to post a head victory. It was 1 1/4 lengths further back to third-place finisher Don Incauto (Arg) as Flamethrowintexan crossed the finish line in 1:47.73 over the firm turf course.
The gelding started his career in the claiming ranks, changing hands several times before Paul Heist claimed him for $62,500 as a three-year-old at Hollywood Park. From that point on, he has raced primarily in stakes races, which have included graded stakes victories in the 2004 British Columbia Derby (Can-G3) at Hastings Race Course, and this year's Longacres Mile Handicap (G3) at Emerald Downs, along with three other stakes victories at Emerald Downs.
After the Longacres Mile victory, he shipped to Hawthorne Race Course where he finished a tiring fifth in the Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap (G2) prior to his turf debut at Bay Meadows.
Bred in Florida by Moloney and Thompson, Flamethrowintexan has earned $800,017 with 15 wins from 25 starts. He is out of the Citidancer mare Willalady.
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