BY BROCK SHERIDAN
Sent to the post as the 2-5 favorite, Troy Johnson, Charles Lo and Jagger Inc.’s Spikezone won his 11th victory of the year with an admirable gate-to-wire score in the $75,000 Let’s Give Thanks at Parx Racing Wednesday. It was the sixth straight win for the 5-year-old Florida-bred gelding who also earned his first career stakes victory in taking the six-and-a-half-furlong test against six other 3-year-olds and older.
Jockey Mychel Sanchez hustled Spikezone to the front from post five and had two-lengths on Capo in second before they left the backstretch chute. Sanchez kept a tight hold on Spikezone through an opening quarter mile in :22.77 as the Capo, One More Scoop and Debit Card chased together in second from two lengths back.
Spikezone maintained a clear advantage around the far turn with only a mild challenge coming from One More Scoop to his inside with a quarter mile to run. But Spikezone drew clear again at the top of the stretch and raced under the wire a length in front in a final time of 1:17.08 on the fast track. One More Scoop finished second, three lengths in front of Capo in third. Witty, Debit Card, Veeson and Depoli completed the order of finish. Angkor and Windsor Gold were scratched.
Spikezone paid $2.80 to win.
Spikezone has now won 11 of 14 starts this year and 14 of his 28 career races with three seconds and five thirds. The $43,800 first-place check increased his lifetime earnings to $481,422.
He was purchased as a yearling for $19,000 by Weston Thoroughbreds as an agent out of Richard Kent’s Kaizen Sales consignment at the 2020 Ocala Breeders’ Sales October Yearling Sale.
He was trained by Jamie Ness for the current ownership group during his first six career starts that included two wins, a second and two thirds. They lost Spikezone to the claim box for $50,000 in November of 2022, but claimed him back for $40,000 one race and less than a month later.
He started only three times in 2023 with two seconds then began his tear through 2024 with an eight-length victory against first condition, $16,000 optional claimers at Tampa Bay Downs in January. He has had several equally impressive performances since, including an eight-and-a-half-length win in a Parx allowance race in June and scoring by nearly 10 lengths three starts back in a $40,000 optional claiming starter allowance at Delaware Park on Oct. 17.
Bred in Florida by Bishop Racing Inc., Spikezone is by Speightster out of Blameitontheice, by Stay Thirsty. She has two winners from two starters and two foals with Spikezone being her only black-type performer.
