NYRA/Adam Coglianese
Readthebyline, a 5-year-old gelding by Read the Footnotes reclaimed by trainer Michelle Nevin and owner Vincent Scuderi for $40,000 out of his most recent start, instantly rewarded his connections by scoring his first career stakes victory gate-to-wire in the seven-furlong, $125,000 Thunder Rumble division of the New York Stallion Stakes series. The race was co-featured at Aqueduct on Saturday along with the NYSS Staten Island division for fillies and mares.
Readthebyline was originally acquired by Nevin and Scuderi in March for $30,000 from trainer David Jacobson and Black Swan Stable. The horse won his single start for the barn on May 7 by open lengths, going a mile at Belmont and earning career-high a Beyer Speed Figure of 109. Claimed out of this race by conditioner Bruce Brown for La Marca Stable for $25,000, four starts later on October 10 Nevin and Scuderi capitalized on the opportunity to get him back for $40,000.
Hustled out of the gate by Jose Ortiz, Readthebyline (5-1, co-second choice with two others) struck the front and never had an anxious moment to the wire. Leading by two lengths through a solid first half-mile in 45.70, the bay cornered neatly, and charged home without facing a serious challenge, securing the victory by 2 3/4 lengths in a final time of 1:23.85 for seven furlongs over the fast going. Odds on favorite West Hills Giant closed from well back to win a photo with Geaux Mets for place. Finishing in order after the top three were John’s Island, Gridley Here, Loki’s Vengeance, Chapman, Sire Leslie and Belief System. [VIDEO]
NYRA/Joe Labozzetta
Ortiz said, “Michelle [Nevin] gets all the credit. She knows him and he runs good for her. I was pretty lucky when she got him back and put him in a stake. I got the easy lead, and he did it.”
Nevin said spotting the gelding in the Thunder Rumble was just a matter of serendipity. “We weren’t particularly pointing to this race, it just happened to come up.”
Nevin continued, “He does have a ton of speed coming out of the gate, so I was just hoping that nobody else would go with him out too soon, to where he would use himself up. He seems to do his best running up front.”
Bred by Gavin Murphy and Catherine Donavan and foaled at Hidden Lake Farm in Otisville, Readthebyline is one of six winners and the first stakes winner out of Seattle Byline, a sinning daughter of Slew City Slew who last changed hands when purchased by Questroyal Stable at the 1998 Keeneland January sale for $46,000. As far as names go, a mating with Read the Footnotes was a match made in heaven.
The gelding has been a consistent check-earner, mostly in the allowance ranks. He earned his first black type in 2013 with a third place finish in the Evan Shipman and his record now stands at seven wins, five seconds and seven thirds from 35 starts with $413,335 in earnings
