BY BROCK SHERIDAN
Amy E. Dunne and trainer Patrick Biancone’s Classic of Course will take on the highly regarded Knightsbridge when the Florida-bred gelding tries to snap a streak of three straight fourth-place finishes in Saturday’s $225,000 Gulfstream Park Mile presented by Fierceness (Grade 3). A stakes winner of last year’s $158,000 Cutler Bay at Gulfstream Park, Classic of Course is one of six 4-year-olds and older scheduled to go a mile around one turn.
The versatile Classic of Course won the $70,000 Awesome Banner overnight handicap at the one-turn mile distance at Gulfstream on November 8 but has rattled off three straight fourth-place finishes over three different surfaces, all at Gulfstream, since. He was four lengths behind Florida-bred winner Prevent in the $100,000 Sabal Palm overnight handicap at a mile-and-70-yards on synthetic on November 29 and eight lengths back in the Grade 3 Harlan’s Holiday won by next-out Pegasus Invitational (G1)-winner Skippylongstocking at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on December 20. Most recently, Classic of Course was less than three lengths off multiple graded stakes-placed Florida-bred Neoequos in the $75,000 Sunshine Turf for Florida-breds at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on January 17.
He won three of 10 starts in 2025 including the Cutler Bay on grass in March and an upper level allowance going a mile-and-70-yards on synthetic in September.
Classic of Course is by Awesome of Course out of the Honor Code mare Alma Mater and was bred in Florida by Dunne and her husband Ciaran Dunne. He has won four of 18 lifetime starts with three seconds and four thirds while earning $404,901. He will run for the winner’s share of $25,000 included in the purse from the Florida-bred Incentive Fund.
Luis Saez will ride the 4-year-old gelding for the first time and they have drawn post four.
The Bill Mott-trained Knightsbridge has won three straight including the Grade 3 Mr. Prospector on December 27 and the Grade 3 Fred Hooper on January 24 at Gulfstream. He started his win streak with a two-and-three-quarters lengths victory in the a second condition, $75,000 optional claiming over a muddy seven furlongs at Aqueduct in November.
A 5-year-old homebred for Godolphin, Knightsbridge is by Nyquist out of Tyburn Brook, by Bernardini and has never finished out of the top three in seven career starts, winning five with a second and a third. He has earned $379,755.
Junior Alvarado has ridden him in his last six starts and will again get the call. They will break from the outside post six.
Rounding out the field are Bernin Hot with Edwin Gonzalez taking the riding assignment, Javier Castellano rides Flying Liam, Steal Sunshine and jockey Jose Morelos and Mika with Flavien Prat in the irons.
Return to the February 24 issue of Wire to Wire
