BY BROCK SHERIDAN
Live Oak Plantation homebred Forever Souper continued to build on a spectacular 2024 as the Florida-bred gelding won his fifth stakes this year while setting a track record in the $150,000 Presque Isle Mile at Presque Isle Downs Friday. Sent to the post as the odds-on favorite with jockey Antonio Gallardo, Forever Souper outlasted 5-2 second choice K. C. Chief while covering the mile-and-one-sixteenth in 1:41.23 against seven 3-year-olds and older on the synthetic main track.
K. C. Chief and rider Irad Ortiz Jr. set quarter-mile fractions of :24.73 and :48.93 while under pressure from Forever Souper to his outside with longshot Rondure trying to keep up just behind them in third.
Forever Souper confronted K. C. Chief with three-eighths of a mile left and those two left the second turn heads apart with Rondure a length back in third. Forever Souper took a short lead past the furlong marker but could not put away the resilient K. C. Chief. They went at each other to the wire with Forever Souper winning by head. Rondure was another length-and-a-quarter back in third followed by Anamnestic, Twilight Dancer, He’s a Mess, Underhill’s Tab and Fortune Seller. Fierce and Strong and Franz Josef were scratched.
Forever Souper paid $3.80 to win at odds of 4-5.
Forever Souper started the year winning the $95,000 Sunshine Turf at Gulfstream Park in January and the $100,000 ESMARK Turf Classic at Tampa Bay Downs in March, both against Florida-breds on the turf. A nightmarish trip resulted in a third-place finish behind winner Dataman in the $99,000 Henry Clark at Laurel in April before another third in the $110,000 Cliff Hanger at Monmouth in May, also won by Dataman.
The Michael Trombetta-trained son of American Pharoah bounced back to win the $96,000 Prince George County at Laurel by a convincing four-and-three-quarter lengths on July 14 then cruised to a two-and-a-quarter-length score in the $79,000 Avery Whisman Memorial at Presque Isle on Aug. 12.
Forever Souper improved to nine wins, a second and four thirds in 18 career starts and the $90,000 first-place check increased his earnings to $490,255.
Mighty Souper was campaigned throughout her multiple stakes-placed career by Live Oak Plantation, who purchased her has a yearling at the 2012 Keeneland September Yearling Sale for $275,000. Live Oak Plantation since sold her to D & D in the 2021 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
Forever Souper is the only stakes horse for Mighty Souper, who has two starters, both winners from five foals. She has an unraced 3-year-old filly, Souper Gin Can Win, by Lookin At Lucky; an unnamed 2-year-old colt by Lookin At Lucky; a yearling colt, Yo Paul, by Yaupon and an unnamed weanling filly by Ocala Stud’s Roadster.
