Midnight Bourbon Secures Ten Qualifying Points For Churchill Downs' May 1 Kentucky Derby

Midnight Bourbon secured an early lead in the Dark Ground Race Course & Slots' $200,000 Lecomte (G3) and held on to it till the finish line. The race, which was for three-year-olds saw Midnight Bourbon cross the finish line with a one-length win over Proxy. Proxy was favored to win before the race but could not manage it, and as such, missed out on the ten qualifying points awarded to the winner ahead of the Churchill Downs Kentucky Derby (G1). It is ironic because the second-favored horse ended up winning the race while the most favored came in second place.

Midnight Bourbon and his jockey, Joe Talamo, started the race fast and maintained that tempo for the rest of the race. They covered the 11/16 miles in 1:44:41, giving the fourth-placed finisher, Santa Cruiser, a substantial gap of 83/4 lengths. The three-year-old thoroughbred has boosted his career winnings with $221,420, which was the reward for finishing the Lecomte (G3) in first place. This is the first race for Midnight Bourbon as a three-year-old, and trainer, Steve Asmussen, could not have been any prouder. With this win, Steve secured his third Lecomte victory and is positive there is more to come from Midnight Bourbon.

In an interview post-race, Asmussen was quick to praise his horse and explain how there is so much more action to be expected from Midnight Bourbon. He said, “Lovely horse, he is a beautiful individual. Obviously, he had run some solid races (at 2), but we were very much looking forward to getting him into two-turn races. His pedigree, we think that going further will help him. He has got a beautiful stride to him. He was away nice and cleanly, and Joe (jockey Talamo) gave him a nice trip.”

Preparations for this race started in November 2020, and it is evident that their hard work paid off. In a list of fixtures lined up, Midnight Bourbon will start next on February 13, at the Risen Star (G2), followed by an appearance at the March 20 TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby (G2). When asked about what is next for Midnight Bourbon, Asmussen was excited to explain how he is going to compete in Risen Star (G2). In his exact words, "I think it is a natural fit."

Talamo was not the first choice jockey but has proved to everyone why he should be. He was called in after the first choice had personal problems that he needed to stay back and take care of. Talamo was very excited about the opportunity and talked about how he was just a passenger on the horse. It is unclear who will mount Midnight Bourbon for Risen Star, but it will not be a surprise if Talamo is recalled to continue what he has started.

Proxy, who had a good race too but couldn't match up with Midnight Bourbon finished the race in second place and earned four qualifying points. Mike Stidham, Proxy's trainer, was satisfied with his performance and is sure that longer races will play well into Proxy's strengths. Mike was more impressed with the fact that Proxy kept going and got closer to Midnight Bourbon as the race progressed. He believes that the Louisiana Derby will do Proxy some good and cannot wait to see what the day brings.