Lexington, KY — A :52 front half teed Combustion for an off-the-pace swing to the lead in the stretch that successfully landed him in front at the finish of a 1:49.3 mile in the third of three divisions of the $299,100 Tall Dark Stranger International Stallion Stakes, for freshman pacing colts and geldings, on Saturday afternoon (Oct. 8) at The Red Mile.

Bamboozler bore responsibility for the race’s early speed. Launching from post nine, he snapped consecutive :26 quarters to string the field by over 14 lengths to the half. That vicious pacesetter soon gasped on the afterburners as the backfield loomed into action coming to three-quarters in 1:20.2.

Combustion landed in front at the finish of a 1:49.3 mile. Amanda Stephens photo.

Ammo fired the first shot from three wide to take the lead in the stretch with Combustion on his back. The Brett Pelling trainee continued to dig into Ammo through the stretch and wore down the late leader to snag victory by a half-length. Admiral Hill gave pursuit behind the top pair to finish third and Gung Ho took fourth.

“I thought it set up really well,” co-owner Shaun Laungani, of Diamond Creek Racing, said after the race. “I turned to Marcus Johansson, our racing manager, and asked ‘Do we need cover?’ and he said “Nope.’ But we got it even still. The setup couldn’t have worked out even better.”

Combustion collected his fifth win from six starts to deposit into an account now worth $113,350 for owners Diamond Creek Racing, Thomas and Scott Dillon, and Cooper Silva Stables. Todd McCarthy piloted the Captaintreacherous colt who returned $7.16 to win.

Handlelikeaporsche waited on nobody as the 1-9 favorite and paced down the road to a 1:50.1 victory in the first division of the Tall Dark Stranger.

Driver Dexter Dunn pushed the pedal on the Chris Ryder-trained son of Lazarus N to lead his peers after a :27.4 first quarter. On cruise control through a :56.2 half, Handlelikeaporsche began peeling from the field to three-quarters in 1:24 and received only reminders from Dunn in the stretch while chased home by Surfside Beach, beaten 1-3/4 lengths. Ken Hanover closed for third and Command finished fourth.

“It’s tough when you’re 1-9; it makes the trainer a little nervous,” Chris Ryder said after the race. “Dexter was happy with him, so we got the job done.”

Chris Ryder co-owns Handlelikeaporsche with William Ezzo, Robert Mondillo and Barry Spak. The colt scored his third win from six starts and has now earned $228,850. He paid $2.14 to win.

A lane opened mid-stretch for pocket-sitting Mamba to charge through and swish a 1:51 buzzer beater by a head at odds of 27-1.

Ervin Hanover left from post eight to lead with Mamba following suit alongside to land in the pocket before a :28 first quarter. Save America, the 1-9 favorite, raced sixth despite the pace remaining soft through a :56.3 half. By that point, Save America pulled from the pylons and glided along the rim to apply minor pressure to Ervin Hanover as he accelerated to three-quarters in 1:24.1.

Save America remained relentless to the outside and forged by as Ervin Hanover drifted through the stretch, but that left a gap wide enough for Mamba’s fresh legs to spurt through and grab the lead in time to deny Save America. Goldin Greatness zoomed to the outside to take third and Ervin Hanover held fourth.

“(We’ve had this horse) three weeks (and he’s improving) each and every start,” trainer Travis Alexander said after the race of Mamba, whom he recently purchase online for $62,000 through Preferred Equine Marketplace. “He’s a nice horse and just needed the time. (I) loved the trip, Joey (Bongiorno) drove him well. I told him to be aggressive. We liked the colt and we made some changes when we bought him and they worked.”

Paying $56.40 to win, Mamba recorded his second win from 11 starts and has now earned $123,430 for owners M Spacc Stables, Fiddler’s Creek Stables LLC, D’Elegance Stable IC and T L P Stable. Joe Bongiorno piloted the Sweet Lou gelding.

Each division of the Tall Dark Stranger International Stallion Stakes was presented by the Tall Dark Stranger Syndicate and Hanover Shoe Farm.

The Grand Circuit meet at The Red Mile is set to conclude on Sunday (Oct. 9) with a power-packed card which includes the $363,500 Tattersalls Pace and $205,000 Glen Garnsey Memorial, the $276,000 Kentucky Filly Futurity and Bulldog Hanover’s challenge against the clock in the $153,000 Allerage Open Pace among other star-packed stakes events. All racing leads to the finale and culmination of the meet: the $430,000 Kentucky Futurity. First-race post time is 1 p.m. (EDT).