Six horses broke from the gate in the March 29 Oaklawn Mile Stakes (G3) at Oaklawn Park but the $500,000 race proved to be a two-horse contest.
The shortest-priced horses on the board—even-money favorite Saudi Crown and 8-5 second choice Banishing—were the stars of the show. Saudi Crown, ridden by Florent Geroux and trained by Brad Cox, grabbed the early lead and took the field through brisk early fractions of :23.16, :46.01, and 1:09.68 with Banishing at his flank throughout. They would even up nose-to-nose while rounding the second turn and leave the remaining challengers far behind.
Banishing and Saudi Crown remained in a tight head-to-head battle until the last few strides before the wire where Banishing advanced to win by a length. The final time was 1:36.77. Banishing paid $5.20 for the win.
The 5-year-old gelded son of Ghostzapper delivered the third win of the day for trainer David Jacobson and jockey Flavien Prat and improved his record at Oaklawn to three wins and a second from four starts.
"It was like we had planned, though we weren't sure we could go with Saudi Crown," said Jacobson, who co-owns Banishing with Larry Roman. "But Banishing, he just doesn't give up."
Godolphin bred Banishing out of the A.P. Indy winner Dowager, who is out of the 2007 Arlington Oaks (G3) and Iowa Oaks (G3) winner Marietta. Banishing is Dowager's first black-type stakes winner and her second black-type stakes performer following stakes-placed winner Nonsensical (Street Sense ).
The Oaklawn Mile is Banishing's first graded stakes victory and his second stakes win after taking the Jan. 23 Byerley Turk Overnight Stakes at Oaklawn. The gelding is Ghostzapper's 59th career graded/group winner and the Adena Springs North sire's first stakes winner so far this year.
Roman acquired Banishing for $80,000 during the 2024 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Horses of Racing Age Sale out of Brookdale Sales' consignment. Since October of last year, Banishing has won five of seven starts, with two seconds by a head for his only losses. He came into the Oaklawn Mile off one of these close second-place finishes in the Feb. 23 Razorback Handicap (G3) to Alexander Helios at Oaklawn.
"I'm a New York boy, but I love Oaklawn," said Roman, who also celebrated his first graded stakes win as an owner. "I work with the best trainers in the business, maybe not the highest-profile guys, and this (win) is the sweetest of all."
Banishing now has a career record of 7-2-2 from 17 starts and has earned $778,804.
The Wine Steward finished third in the Oaklawn Mile, 9 1/2 lengths behind Saudi Crown.
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