Palace reigns in Fall Highweight

Antonio Miuccio's Palace tipped wide for the stretch drive and outfinished

Strapping Groom to prove best in Thursday's Grade 3, $300,000

Fall Highweight Handicap

at Aqueduct. Weighted under a 129-pound impost,

Palace was making his graded stakes debut following a pair of restricted stakes

wins over New York-bred rivals. Cornelio Velasquez was up.

The Linda Rice-trained four-year-old colt has now captured four of his last

five starts. Haltered for $20,000 from a maiden claiming win in October 2012,

Palace improved his overall record to 14-8-2-2, $532,050, with the 1 1/2-length

decision.

Jake N Elwood sprinted to the fore and established splits in :22 1/5 and :45

2/5 while under pressure from Strapping Groom, the 135-pound highweight. Palace

settled in midpack and rated about five lengths off of the early action.

Strapping Groom took the lead into the stretch as The Lumber Guy joined the

fray to his outside, and Palace closed rapidly into contention while at least

five paths wide leaving the far turn. Strapping Groom shook loose from The

Lumber Guy in midstretch but could not withstand the charge from Palace, who

powered his way past in the final sixteenth of a mile to win going away under

the wire.

Off as the 5-2 second choice, Palace returned a $7.40 win mutuel after

completing six furlongs in 1:09 4/5 on the "good" track.

Strapping Groom, the 5-1 sixth choice, wound up a half-length better than the

4-1 The Lumber Guy in third. It was another 2 1/2 lengths to last year's winner

Caixa Eletronica in fourth.

Sage Valley, the 2-1 favorite, Saturday's Charm, B Shanny and Jake N Elwood

rounded out the order of finish.

"I really think he likes sitting off the pace as a come-from-behind

sprinter," Rice said. "He seems to relish that, and, now that we have figured

that out, he's doing great."

"Perfect trip," Velasquez added. "I think he's getting much better all the

time. Before, he wanted to run on the lead; now he's better coming from behind.

He ran good the last part of the race -- fast."

Bred in New York by the Peter J. Callahan Revocable Trust, Palace was

initially purchased for $160,000 at the 2011 OBS March two-year-old sale. He's

by the successful Grade 1-winning stallion City Zip and hails from the winning

End Sweep mare Receivership, a half-sister to Grade 2 winner French Park.

After showing little early in his career, Palace was dropped into the maiden

claiming ranks for his fourth career start and wound up being taken by his

current connections following an 11 3/4-length victory. The bay has never raced

for a tag again.

He posted four wins over optional claiming opponents before capturing the

August 23 Chowder's First at Saratoga by three lengths and the October 19 Hudson

Handicap at Belmont by 1 1/4 lengths.

"I was really excited about today's race, because it is quite gratifying,"

Rice said. "The fact he's a son of City Zip -- I trained (Palace's) father, who

was such a tremendous racehorse -- makes it really cool."

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