At a 4 1/2-furlong distance, there was not a whole lot of floor to make up from a poor begin. Nevertheless, that didn’t faze Gurney Halleck as he made a sustained rally to nail the leaders by a half-length within the $75,800 Henry Mercer Memorial Stakes at Hollywood On line casino at Charles City Races Sept. 20.
The win was a monumental one for the 2-year-old colt’s sire, Sensible Joke  , who tallied his fiftieth black-type stakes winner. The son of Into Mischief  stood the 2025 season at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud for $100,000.Gurney Halleck, gr/ro, 2/c
Sensible Joke — Fiona Bella, by Fiber Sonde
Proprietor: David M. Raim
Breeder: O’Sullivan Farms, LLC & Javier Contreras (WV)
Coach: Jeff C. Runco
Jockey: Arnaldo Bocachica
Data offered by Equibase at time of entry.
Pedigree Notes
Sensible Joke stands at Ashford Stud for $100,000 (2025).
Sale Historical past
KEESEP2024 • $100,000 • Consignor: Paramount Gross sales • Purchaser: Jeff Runco, agent for David Raim.
Ridden by Arnaldo Bocachica, the colt bred in West Virginia by O’Sullivan Farms and Javier Contreras accomplished the gap in :52.42 and paid $6.00 to win as the favourite. Skilled by Jeff Runco for proprietor David Raim, Gurney Halleck broke his maiden with the win after debuting with a runner-up end to Chuck City on the identical monitor and distance Sept. 6. He flipped the tables Saturday as Chuck City completed second.
A 3-time grade 1 winner on the racetrack, Sensible Joke has handed his pace and expertise to his offspring world wide. Having sired 5 grade 1 winners in North America, together with latest Natalma Stakes (G1T) winner Corsia Veloce , Sensible Joke has additionally sired seven South American group 1 winners, all bred in Chile. A type of, Richi , is a two-time graded stakes winner and two-time grade 1-placed in america.
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