Hawthorne – Illinois Derby Grade III – 1 1/8 Miles
The horse that won the $500,000 Illinois Derby at the Hawthorne track was the horse called Musket Man. This was the second straight graded stakes victory for the son of Yonaguska, who also took the Tampa Bay Derby last month.
Musket Man has a great record of five wins in a six lifetime starts, and will head to the Kentucky Derby. This horse is owned by Eric Fein and Vic Carlson and is trained by Derek Ryan. “I suppose we have to go to Kentucky now,” said Ryan with a sheepish grin after the race.
Musket Man was ridden for the first time by Eibar Coa and raced mid-pack in the early stages of the race. Perfect Song took the field of 10 through splits of :23.84, :47.67, and 1:12.30 under Mario Pino. His Greatness passes the mid pace in second while Al Khali and Giant Oak were also close up.
As the horses made their way around the far turn, Musket Man got into striking position. Musket Man easily passed Perfect Song at the eighth pole and then powered through the stretch. The only threat was Giant Oak which they neared at the 16th pole, but Musket Man ended up passing him soon thereafter.
While Musket Man got first place, Giant Oak finished in second place with His Greatness finishing third, and Nowhere to Hide finishing fourth. Musket Man was bred in Kentucky by Jim E. Nelson and Sergio De Sousa, and has earned a total of $572,600.
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