Cogburn Strikes Off Layoff, Bags Second Graded Win In Twin Spires Turf Sprint

Cogburn pressed outside of pacesetter Coppola to the top of the stretch, then willingly shook off that rival to lead at the three-sixteenths pole and drew clear to win the $600,000 Twin Spires Turf Sprint (G2) Saturday at Churchill Downs.

Ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., the 5-year-old son of Not This Time won by 2 1/4 lengths while Filo Di Arianna (BRZ) stormed up the rail to take second. Favorite Mischief Magic (IRE) came on for third, three-quarters of a length back.

Cogburn took the lead out of the gate and dueled with Coppola and Mo Stash through an opening quarter mile of :22.61 and a half-mile in :45.27. At the top of the stretch, Cogburn was ready to run.

Cogburn returned $18.79 for the victory after covering the 5 1/2-furlong in 1:03.16 on turf rated as good. He was making his first start in eight months after finishing fifth in the  Ainsworth Turf Sprint (G2) Sept. 9 at Kentucky Downs. That race followed a trio of turf wins, including the Troy (G3) at Saratoga, for trainer Steve Asmussen, who switched him to grass racing after an his unplaced finish in the Count Fleet Sprint Handicap (G3) in April at Oaklawn Park. 

Cogburn's dirt record includes seconds in both the 2022 Chick Lang  (G3) at Pimlico and Bachelor at Oaklawn, but he's demonstrated a definite affinity for the turf. Prior to the Troy, he won a pair of turf stakes in May and June at Lone Star Park. Saturday's triumph marked his second graded win.

Overall, Cogburn has a 7-2-0 record from 13 career starts. The The $342,100 winner's share of the Turf Sprint purse increased his lifetime bankroll to $962,730.

Campaigned by Clark Brewster and William and Corrine Heiligbrodt, Cogburn was a $150,000 purchase by Brewster at the 2021 OBS Spring Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale, where he was presented by Pick View. Bred in Kentucky by Bellary Bloodstock, his dam is he Saintly Look mare In a Jif.