Ole Crazy Bone steals Bowling Green; Movin’ On Up in Caress

The graded turf stakes at Saratoga on Saturday offered completely different case studies in how pace makes the race.

Ole Crazy Bone controlled a glacial pace in the $250,000 Bowling Green (G2) and just lasted from persistent British shipper Fort George and the flying Minaret Station. Trained by Mike Maker and piloted by hot-riding Flavien Prat, the six-year-old veteran was justifying 7-5 favoritism.

But the $242,500 Caress (G2) witnessed a pace meltdown that set the table for Movin’ On Up, a 5.31-1 chance, to live up to her name both literally and figuratively. With a last-to-first move, the Saffie Joseph Jr. trainee earned her first graded stakes victory.

Bowling Green (G2)

Making his second start back from a knee injury, Flying P Stable’s Ole Crazy Bone proved that he retained all his ability and resolve with a gutsy front-running effort. The Ghostzapper gelding put himself on course for a title defense in the Sept. 5 Kentucky Turf Cup (G2) at Kentucky Downs, a “Win and You’re In” for the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1).

Ole Crazy Bone benefited from Prat’s careful doling out of his speed through splits of :24.62, :49.54, 1:15.22, and 1:39.98 on the firm inner turf. Fort George was perched close enough, in second at every call, to make his presence felt without forcing the issue. 

But the pace ratcheted up on the final turn as the duo engaged in earnest. Ole Crazy Bone was able to sprint just as quickly as Fort George and thereby managed to maintain a slight edge. Prat began to take it easy on him in the final strides, and Fort George nearly made him regret it with one final lunge on the line.

Ole Crazy Bone’s nose was still in front at the end of the 1 3/8-mile test in 2:14.18. Fort George’s near-miss might have occasioned tactical what-ifs, but the Ed Walker pupil validated his Dubai Carnival form in his U.S. debut.

Another half-length away in third was Minaret Station, who delivered a mighty rally to come so close in defiance of a race shape all against him. There was a four-length gap back to Desvio, trailed by Carson’s Run and Soleil Volant. Carcano was scratched along with the main-track-only entrants Dr. Kraft, Kinetic, and Yo Daddy.

Ole Crazy Bone, a $100,000 claim at Churchill Downs last summer by his current connections, has compiled an overall mark of 21-8-6-2 with $1,926,354 in earnings. Placed in the 2024 Texas Turf Classic and 2025 John B. Connally Turf Cup for original trainer Bret Calhoun, he wasted no time in repaying Flying P’s investment. Ole Crazy Bone was a rattling runner-up in the Kentucky Downs Preview Turf Cup first off the claim at Ellis Park, and he broke through in the Kentucky Turf Cup itself. Then he was sidelined by a bone chip in his knee. 

“Mike spotted him for the $2.5 million race at Kentucky Downs,” Flying P’s Jay Provenzano said, “and he showed him what he could do. We got the “Win and You’re In,” and to claim a horse and get an automatic berth (to the Breeders’ Cup) is something special. He put in his second-to-last piece of work and we were to fly out there (to Del Mar), and he came back just a little off, and all our dreams were shot all at once.”

A promising second in a May 21 allowance at Churchill hinted that Ole Crazy Bone was back in business, and he verified it in the Bowling Green.

“What he's gone through with his injury, to come back I think equally as good as he was last year, very impressive,” Maker told NYRA publicity.

Provenzano mentioned another poignant aspect of the victory.

“The only thing I miss after today is I lost my mother (Suzanne) a couple months ago, and she would be my first call right now. I know she was definitely watching at the wire and got me there.”

Prat, who won four races on the card, admitted that Fort George made it awfully close.

“I thought I had him, and then he came back,” Prat said of the runner-up. 

“He (Ole Crazy Bone) was running very well in front. I thought the pace was good. We kind of picked it up early around the turn, I was able to get away from him (Fort George) turning for home, and he came back late. My horse was there for me." 

Walker confirmed that Fort George would remain at the Spa for the Aug. 15 Christophe Clement Turf (G1), formerly the Sword Dancer, in pursuit of a “Win and You’re In” for the Turf.

“It was a big run, really happy,” the British trainer said. “Obviously, when you’re that close you’re always gutted to get beaten. I think Prat just slowed the pace up enough to make it hard for us to reel him in. It was a really great run from Fort George, he’s so tough and genuine. Very proud of him, it was a shame not to have won.

“We knew that horse would go forward and I think Kieran (Shoemark) did exactly the right thing. He pressed him enough and then decided to take out. I think that was the right thing to do. Prat just slowed it up a bit too much. Prat gave it a very good ride and Kieran gave a very good ride. We had to make up ground around the outside, and we had to go the long way around compared to the winner. No complaints."

Caress (G2)

Movin’ On Up was likewise an astute claim, snapped up by Ken Ramsey and Joseph for just $35,000 out of her maiden win as a juvenile at Gulfstream Park in 2023. 

The Caress was a particularly good spot to score a new career high, as the 90-year-old Ramsey was on the scene to enjoy the winner’s circle ceremony at the Spa.

“This is the first time I've been to Saratoga since I had my kidney transplant,” Ramsey said, “and I hold the world's record for a kidney transplant. It's a Guinness World Record - I beat out a guy in Toronto, Canada. I got a kidney transplant at 88 years and 270 days.”

Winning rider Tyler Gaffalione also commented on the occasion.

“It’s so special. He’s been so amazing to me in my career, so supportive through the years,” Gaffalione said. “After everything he’s dealt with, to show up here full of enthusiasm, it’s amazing to see.”

Gaffalione did his part to spark that enthusiasm with a heady ride aboard Movin’ On Up. Having spent nearly her entire career in the vicinity of a mile, the gray faced a question mark about her prospects of winning a Grade 2 dashing 5 1/2 furlongs. 

Stablemate In Our Time, on the other hand, garnered 1.49-1 favoritism as a proven turf sprinter. But she became embroiled in a wicked pace scenario pressing Sunna, the 2.06-1 second choice. Their odds may have been reduced by the scratch of another prime player, Italian Soiree.

Both Sunna and In Our Time were softened up after fractions of :20.87 and :43.24 on the firm Mellon turf. Although In Our Time kept on better than Sunna, she was the proverbial sitting duck by midstretch. 

Zeitlos was the first to make smart headway along the inside, but she could not live with Movin’ On Up’s devastating late burst wider out. Zeitlos’s rider, Jose Ortiz, believed that their stalking position might have detracted a bit from her late kick.

“I think the pace was hot. In a small field, I tried to be a little closer than usual, and it probably took some closing (kick) out of her,” Ortiz said. “But I felt like the position I had with her going into the turn, I had to go forward instead of taking back. I went forward, and maybe it cost me a little bit, but the winner ran very good.”

Movin’ On Up, who had been biding her time in last, swept past the field to win comfortably by 1 1/4 lengths. She clocked 1:01.04 to advance her line to 20-6-2-5, $734,970.

“Saffie said just to be patient with her,” Gaffalione revealed of the $12.62 winner. “She’s been training great, and I just needed to get the trip today. She broke, she put herself where she wanted to be and in a great rhythm. I smooched (to) her going into the turn ,and she picked it up nicely. As soon as we got to the stretch, I tipped her out and she found another gear and really finished the job well. She’s one of those horses that makes us look good.”

“She got the right pace scenario,” Joseph observed. “Obviously, Sunna, we had to take her on with the other filly (In Our Time) because if you let her go, she's going to win. The race kind of fell apart, and Movin’ On Up was able to pick up the pieces.

“I wasn’t happy for In Our Time,” Joseph said of the torrid opening quarter, “but it works both ways.”

In Our Time did well to salvage third, another length astern of Zeitlos. Next came Obstreperous and Sunna. 

Movin’ On Up, whose prior stakes victory came in the 2025 Sand Springs S. at Gulfstream Park, had been knocking on the door at the graded level. Third in last year’s Churchill Distaff Turf Mile (G2) and Mint Julep (G3), she also took the bronze in the Jan. 24 Pegasus World Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G2) and the April 12 Giant’s Causeway (G2) on the cutback to 5 1/2 furlongs. Movin’ On Up stretched out to try the Distaff Turf Mile again on May 2, but after a fourth behind Classic Q and Portfolio Duration, she reverted to sprinting here.

Joseph indicated that Movin’ On Up and In Our Time would likely go their separate ways, with the Aug. 29 Kentucky Downs Ladies Sprint (G1) a better fit for the latter. 

“Movin’ On Up doesn’t like Kentucky Downs,” the horseman said. “She’s been there twice. In Our Time loves it, she ran twice there last year, and she’s going to go to the Grade 1 at Kentucky Downs.”

Bred by the Estate of Harvey A. Clarke, Movin’ On Up hails from the family of 2012 Kentucky Derby (G1) and Preakness (G1) champion I’ll Have Another. 

Her dam, the Cairo Prince mare Stifle Yourself, is a full sister to Grade 3-placed Archie the Giza and a half to Grade performers Harvey’s Lil Goil and Gosger. Harvey’s Lil Goil scored her signature win in the 2020 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1), while Gosger, last year’s Lexington (G3) winner, just missed in the Preakness and Haskell (G1).