NEWS: RACING

Captain Bombastic wins Laurel’s Polynesian

Saturday, September 18th, 2021

Captain Bombastic and Feargal Lynch return after winning the Polynesian. Maryland Jockey Club photo

By Melissa Bauer-Herzog

Captain Bombastic hadn’t visited the winner’s circle since winning the New York Stallion Series Times Square stakes last summer but ended that dry spell with a victory in the $100,000 Polynesian Stakes at Laurel Park Saturday.

Racing over a mile on the dirt with Feargal Lynch doing the riding, Captain Bombastic entered a duel for the lead out of the gate and put the pressure on Grade 1 winner Roadster and Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith nearly every step of the way around the Maryland oval.

The pair stayed glued together until mid-stretch when Captain Bombastic put away that foe, only to be confronted by Cordmaker.

Cordmaker tried to run down the leader, but Captain Bombastic continued his run all the way to the line to stop the clock in 1:36.11 for owner Team Hanley and trainer Steve Asmussen. Cordmaker finished a length behind in second, but was disqualified and placed sixth, moving Phat Man into second and Roadster into third.

“With Steve’s horses, you don’t get in their way and you just get good position,” Lynch said. “When Mike left the rail open, it was either go in there or take back. But Steve’s horses . . . they’re warriors. It’s so hard to describe. You look at their ears, they’re flat back and they want to win more than anybody.”

It was only the 4-year-old Forty Tales colt’s second start for Asmussen, but the victory improved his record to five wins in 14 career starts with four other top-three finishes for $486,800 in earnings. Bred by Chester and Mary Broman, Captain Bombastic was an $80,000 OBS March Sale of 2-year-old purchase by Bradley Thoroughbreds from Sequel Bloodstock in 2019. The second-generation Broman homebred made his first 10 starts (through last year) with trainer Jeremiah Englehart and won four times including stakes triumphs in the Sleepy Hollow in 2019 and Mike Lee and Times Square last year. The chestnut colt started 2021 with trainer Chad Brown for two starts, but moved to Asmussen over the summer and was fifth in the John Morrissey at Saratoga in late July.

The Bromans purchased Captain Bombastic’s granddam Unbridled Star for $115,000 at Keeneland November in 2002. The mare was carrying Captain Bombastic’s multiple stakes-placed dam Stolen Star at the time and later went on to produce multiple stakes winning stallion Friend Or Foe and stakes winner Star Grazing and the dam of stakes winner Surge of Pride

Stolen Star won three races of her own with four stakes placings but has done even better in the breeding shed as the dam of multiple Grade 2 winner and Grade 1-placed Highway Star among her five winners. She is the sixth generation of her female family to produce at least one stakes winner with Myth starting the streak when producing stakes winner Delta Champagne.

Stolen Star has a New York-bred 2-year-old filly named Sunset in Malibu, who hasn’t gone to public auction. Her unnamed yearling New York-bred colt by Good Magic has not yet gone through an auction ring either. The mare had an Omaha Beach filly on April 4 and returned to Good Magic this year.

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