Burnham Square rallies from the rear to win Blue Grass by a nose and qualify for Kentucky Derby

By Canadian Press on April 8, 2025.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Burnham Square chased down East Avenue from the back of the pack and won by a nose in the storm-delayed $1.25 million Blue Grass at Keeneland on Tuesday, earning enough points to qualify for next month’s Kentucky Derby.

The 101st running of the Blue Grass was postponed from Saturday because of heavy rain and deadly flooding in Kentucky. The upcoming Lexington Stakes on Saturday is the final derby qualifying race.

Burnham Square, ridden by Brian Hernandez, covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:51.33 and paid $10.48, $5.18 and $3.34 at 4-1 odds. The Ian Wilkes-trained gelding also earned 100 points from the Grade I race toward the 151st Derby on May 3 at Churchill Downs in Louisville.

East Avenue returned $6.42 and $4.26 for second and earned 50 Derby points, while Todd Pletcher-trained favorite River Thames finished third, paying $3.24 and receiving 25 points.

Admiral Dennis (15 points) was fourth beneath substitute jockey Manny Franco, who took the mount after veteran Luiz Saez was injured from a fall in the second race. Saez was in stable condition at a hospital after Fateful Lightning on Keeneland’s turf course.

Burnham Square lagged far behind as East Avenue led seven horses entering the backstretch before steadily moving up and saving his best after rounding the final turn. He stalked East Avenue from the outside and the horses were even in the final yards before Burnham Square edged East Avenue at the line for his second stakes victory in three starts this year.

He won the Grade III Holy Bull at Gulfstream by 1 3/4 lengths in February before running fourth in the Grade II Fountain of Youth on March 25.

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AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing

Gary B. Graves, The Associated Press

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