Oak Grove, KY — Admiral Hill, who holds the track record for the all-time fastest pacing mile at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel, made his long awaited return to the winner’s circle with a sharp steer from Atlee Bender to claim the $30,000 Open Pace in a 1:50.4 effort on Monday (April 6).
Leaving from post five, Bender sent Admiral Hill forward before reining back to the middle of the pack while race favorites Oakwood Heymiki IR (driven by Matt Krueger) and Tip Top Cat (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.) dropped back to last and second to last in the first turn. Humble A (Joey Putnam) forged to the lead through a :26.3 first quarter and slowed the tempo to a :55.2 half, at which point Bender activated Admiral Hill and launched off the pylons for an attack.
Admiral Hill climbed the ranks and promptly swept past Humble A through three-quarters in 1:23.2. Bender built a 2-1/2-length cushion as Tip Top Cat and Oakwood Heymiki IR fanned to the center of the track and ignited their furious charges for the finish. Tip Top Cat dove to a seam at the inside while Oakwood Heymiki IR lengthened in stride and reached for the leader late, but Bender secured a strong-enough jump turning for home to hold onto the victory by three-quarters of a length. Oakwood Heymiki IR settled for second with Tip Top Cat taking third and Fox Valley Langley (Brandon Bates) saving ground to finish fourth another six lengths behind.
Per Engblom trains Admiral Hill, a 6-year-old gelding by Sweet Lou, for owner Morrison Racing Stables. Admiral Hill has now won two times from six starts this season and 29 times from 69 starts in his career, earning $834,233. He paid $5.56 to win.
Racing resumes at Oak Grove on Tuesday (April 7) with a 13-race card headlined by a $16,000 conditioned pace carded as Race 11. First-race post time at Oak Grove is 1:10 p.m.