Gimme Da Lute captures Affirmed

One day after the Bob Baffert-trained American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile)

became the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978, another Baffert

colt posted a half-length victory in the $98,000

Affirmed

S. (G3) at Santa Anita Park.

Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman's homebred Gimme Da Lute (Midnight

Lute) battled Prospect Park (Tapit) into submission before inching away to score

in the 1 1/16-mile contest. The bay colt broke in and slammed Cyrus Alexander

(Medaglia d'Oro) when the gates opened, then moved to the front and began

dueling with Om (Munnings) through an opening half-mile in :23 2/5 and :46 2/5.

Gimme Da Lute dropped back a bit prior to the final turn, then kicked into

gear again and ranged up to Om's outside. Prospect Park followed about three

wide, and the trio ran stride-for-stride into the stretch.

Om, who who handed American Pharoah his only loss to date last August at Del

Mar, couldn't keep pace and dropped back while Gimme Da Lute and Prospect Park

duked it out. Gimme Da Lute slowly pulled away to be first under the wire in a

final time of 1:41 2/5 over the fast main track.

Sent off the 7-2 co-second choice in the four-horse field, Gimme Da Lute paid

$9.20 for the win. It was his second stakes victory and first graded score after

taking the Echo Eddie S. on April 4. That race followed his first career win in

a February 21 maiden and was proceeded by third-place runs in the May 2 Pat Day

Mile (G3) and May 16 Chick Lang S.

Making his third start in just five weeks in the Affirmed, Gimme Da Lute

improved his lifetime mark to 6-3-1-2 and has now banked $247,560 in career

earnings.