by Tom Musgrave

Zanjero won his second straight stakes after he split horses entering the stretch and swiftly drew clear to a 1 1/2-length victory in the $350,000 Kentucky Cup Classic Stakes (G2) on Saturday at Turfway Park.

Winchell Thoroughbreds's Zanjero stalked the pace set through a half-mile in :47.62 by 8-to-5 favorite Honest Man. As Extreme Supreme took over through six furlongs in 1:11.88, Zanjero and jockey Shaun Bridgmohan made their winning move heading into the second turn.

Zanjero took a half-length lead in early stretch and held off Extreme Supreme to win the 1 1/8-mile race in 1:49.27 on Turfway's synthetic Polytrack surface.

The race marked the third start on Polytrack for Zanjero, who finished third on the surface in the 2007 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G1) at Keeneland Race Course after breaking his maiden on it the previous season at the Lexington track.

Canela finished a third in Saturday’s race, four lengths behind Extreme Supreme. Grade 3 winner Honest Man faded in the stretch to fourth.

Zanjero entered the Kentucky Cup Classic off a 4 3/4-length win in the West Virginia Governor's Stakes on August 2 at Mountaineer Race Track. He was the runner-up in his first two starts this season, the Texas Mile Stakes (G3) on April 26 and the Lone Star Park Handicap (G3) on May 26, both at Lone Star.

Trained by Steve Asmussen, Zanjero has won six of 18 starts and boosted his earnings to $1,620,786. The four-year-old Cherokee Run colt was bred by Tony Holmes and Walter Zent and is out of the A.P. Indy mare Checkered Flag.

Also on the Kentucky Cup card:

Multiple graded stakes winner Bear Now raced two wide before making her move in the second turn of the $100,000 Kentucky Cup Distaff Stakes (G3). The Tiznow filly took control of the 1 1/16-mile race entering the stretch and drew away to a four-length win.

Bear Stables' Bear Now improved to three wins in six starts this season, including two stakes wins at Woodbine. She finished the Kentucky Cup Distaff in 1:43.37.

In the $100,000 Kentucky Cup Sprint Stakes (G3), Fatal Bullet led at every point of call, cruising to a 7 3/4-length win. Bear Stables Ltd.'s bay Red Bullet gelding finished the race in track-record time, completing six furlongs in 1:08.03.

The previous record was set by Malibu Mint and Straight Line, who went the distance in 1:08.40 on September 23, 2006, and December 30, 2006, respectively.

George and Lori Hall's West Side Bernie rated off the pace in fifth and reeled in the leaders nearing the three-eighths pole, kicking clear to win the $100,000 Kentucky Cup Juvenile Stakes (G3) by three lengths.

The Bernstein colt is undefeated in two starts after finishing the 1 1/16-mile race in 1:44.22.

In the $100,000 Kentucky Cup Juvenile Fillies Stakes, Sugar Mom chased the pace set by 9-to-5 favorite Bold Union, then made a steady advance along the backstretch. Angling out leaving the turn, she wore down three rivals en route to a one-length win.

Frank Calabrese's Sugar Mom, a bay Monarchos filly, finished the one-mile race in 1:37.86.

For Equibase charts, click here.

Tom Musgrave is internet content editor of Thoroughbred Times