Commissioner rolls to victory in Pimlico Special (G3)

WinStar Farm’s Commissioner scored his second straight graded stakes win in Friday’s $300,000 Pimlico Special, winning the 1 3/16-mile contest by a clear-cut 2 ½-lengths.

Coming off a victory in the Grade 3 Skip Away S., at the same distance, on March 28, Commissioner was three wide going into the first turn at Pimlico, but managed to get alongside the early leader Encryption by the time they got to the backstretch. That duo essentially raced as one for the next half-mile, when Commissioner began to pull away.

In the stretch, Commissioner was under a hand ride as he pulled clear by some three lengths with a furlong to go. Page McKenney made a late run into second, but was no threat to the winner, who stopped the timer in 1:56.09 for a Beyer Speed Figure of 101.

“This was awesome,” said winning trainer Todd Pletcher. “I’m very happy. I loved the position he was able to get into. Once he gets into that rhythm, you can keep on cruising. Right after the Skip Away, we talked about it and decided to go to the Pimlico Special. We’ll see how he comes out of it. It’s 22 days to the (GII) Brooklyn H. (at Belmont Park), so that’s possible.”

Commissioner, who was second in last year’s Belmont S. (G1), has now earned $797,237 after the $180,000 payday. Bred by WinStar, Commissioner is by A.P. Indy out of the dual stakes-winning Touch Gold mare Flaming Heart.