Del Mar, CA
Tough It Out broke his maiden by defeating eight rivals in a weak Cal-bred maiden special weight event Thursday.
The two-year-old gelding showed patience when waiting for room down the lane to unleash his winning move before the wire. Problem is his winning move wasn't all that fast.
The final time for the 1m turf race was a slow 1:36 including very slow splits of :47 and 1:24.
It was a great ride by the red-hot Santiago Gonzalez and the first time gelding was ready on the stretch out after two sprint races.
He returned $12.40 to win and a clear second was the favorite Gio Mio. Everyone else was no match for the top pair.
No one in this event, including Tough It Out, has a strong turf or route pedigree.
This is a race to take note of moving forward. Rating all of these runners below average for this type of level. Including the winner, if he is moved up too much in class when facing winners for the first time.