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Stormy gets the nod in Commonwealth photo

Get Stormy (blaze) clocked a stakes-record time while posting his fourth straight victory (Churchill Downs/Reed Palmer Photography) Sullimar Stable's homebred GET STORMY (Stormy Atlantic) led throughout in Sunday's $112,100 Commonwealth Turf S. (G3) at Churchill Downs, but had to pull out all the stops to stave off a rallying Street Move (Street Cry [Ire]) by a nose at the wire. With Javier Castellano aboard, the Tom Bush trainee blitzed 1 1/16 miles in a stakes-record 1:41 3/5 on the firm turf, smashing the old stakes mark of 1:43 set by Inca King in 2007. The 9-5 favorite, who was extending his winning streak to four, rewarded his backers with payouts of $5.80, $4 and $3.40. Get Stormy broke sharply from the hedge and was quick to seize the advantage, clocking splits of :23 2/5, :47 and 1:11 3/5 while pressed by Major Marvel (Bernstein). As Proceed Bee (Bernstein) stalked on the outside, Florentino (Jpn) (Swept Overboard) crept up to track the leader along the inside. In the stretch, Get Stormy spurted away from his pursuers and opened up a three-length margin. Meanwhile, Street Move, who had been steadily improving his position, erupted from midpack and set sail after him. The late runner briefly appeared ready to tackle Get Stormy, but the leader proved to be resolute. Despite hopping onto his left lead in the final yards, Get Stormy knuckled down when challenged and refused to let Street Move pass.

"We had a great post to go straight to the rail and try to harness some of my speed," Castellano said. "I don't want to take anything away from the horse. He was very sharp today and felt great. I tried to make him relax a little today. He got some pretty easy fractions up front. When I asked him to take off for home he responded very well and opened up for me. He is really starting to mature and turn into a nice horse."

"This is great," said owner/breeder Mary A. Sullivan, whose nom de course is Sullimar Stable. "This is absolutely just wonderful beyond belief. I was hoping (we'd win the photo) but I wasn't sure until they put it up. It was so close. What a great race. He's moved up a lot and now he's going to have a rest until his four-year-old year. He's done well enough to go home and take it easy for a while."

"If it was a mile and a sixteenth and a jump, (Street Move) gets all of it today," jockey Joe Bravo lamented. "Just give all the credit to Kiaran (McLaughlin) for bringing this one around. He is really starting to develop and become a great horse."

Street Move returned $6 and $4.80 for his near-miss effort at 6-1 and concluded the $43.20 exacta. The runner-up was three lengths clear of 20-1 shot Grizzled Robert (Aptitude), who yielded $10 to show and rounded out the $420.80 trifecta. Pop Tarrt (E Dubai) rallied from last for fourth, just a head shy of third, and capped the $3,470.80 superfecta (1-4-7-2) at 9-1. Proceed Bee tired to fifth and was followed by Quite a Handful (Mutakddim), Major Marvel, Florentino, Perfect Bull (Holy Bull) and Spectacular Kid (Mizzen Mast).

Get Stormy's winning skein, which began with a three-length allowance score at Saratoga in July, now includes three straight stakes. The bay sophomore captured his stakes debut in the Lure S. next time out at the Spa, then landed the Bryan Station S. (G3) at Keeneland in his latest venture. Get Stormy, who has raced exclusively on turf, sports a 12-5-2-1 mark with $273,586 in earnings.

Bred in Kentucky, Get Stormy is out of the Kiri's Clown mare Foolish Gal, whose youngest progeny are a yearling colt named Foolish Tiger (Hold That Tiger) and a weanling filly named Glory Gal (Honour and Glory). With his fourth dam being multiple stakes heroine Amerigo's Fancy (*Amerigo), Get Stormy hails from the family of Grade 2 winners Tres Borrachos (Ecton Park), Informed (Tiznow), Triple Tipple (Raise a Cup) and Summer Wind Dancer (Siberian Summer).

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