Quereme Pass, a breath away from making history in the San Simeon Stakes
- Turf Diario
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The Argentine fought head-to-head in the final straight and fell by just a nose to Sumter in the traditional stakes down the Santa Anita
ARCADIA, California—It was so close. So close that for several meters it seemed possible that the Argentine Quereme Pass would write a historic chapter for South American racing in the United States. However, the wire arrived just an instant too soon for his aspirations, and he ultimately yielded the victory by a nose to the veteran Sumterin the San Simeon Stakes (G3), held Saturday over the famous 1300-meter hillside turf course at Santa Anita Park.
Trained in California and ridden by Emisael Jaramillo, the son of Distinctiv Passion broke sharply and quickly took command, leading the way with determination through a race that saw frantic fractions of 21s 96/100, 44s 28/100, and 1m 6s 65/100, reflecting an intense pace from the start.
For much of the trip, the Argentine representative showed courage and composure at the front, managing the tempo as his rivals approached. Among them appeared Sumter, an experienced runner who found his best form on the unique hillside turf course layout. With Mike Smith in the irons, the Richard Mandella trainee advanced as they crossed the dirt transition before the final straight and drew level with the leader.
At the top of the stretch, Sumter managed to edge ahead slightly, but the story was far from over. Quereme Passcharged back with enormous bravery, responding to Jaramillo’s urging and engaging in a vibrant head-to-head duel with his rival. During the final meters, both ran practically on even terms in an electrifying finish that kept all of Santa Anita in suspense.
The wire finally determined that Sumter would claim the victory by the smallest possible margin—just a nose—while Quereme Pass delivered a top-level performance, falling just one step short of becoming the first South American horse to win the San Simeon Stakes.
Just a head behind the top two finished Genius Jimmy (Jimmy Creed), who closed strongly under Juan Hernandez, completing a tight finish among the three main protagonists.
For Sumter, it was his first graded stakes victory and the second stakes success of his career, improving his record to 32 starts with 6 wins, 6 seconds, and 5 thirds, while pushing his earnings near US$ 590,000.
“I found out something today,” Mike Smith commented after the race. “When I let him move forward a bit, he lost focus for a moment, and at that point, I just hoped he could hang on. Luckily, it all worked out in the end.”
However, beyond the winner's celebration, the performance of Quereme Pass left a massive impression. With grit, speed, and total commitment in the final straight, the Argentine was literally centimeters away from achieving a historic triumph in one of the traditional turf sprint stakes in California.
With this performance, the Lugamo Racing representative qualified to run in the Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint (G2), part of the Kentucky Downs meet, contested over 1200 meters with a total purse of US$ 2,000,000.
The story did not end in victory, but it did end in confirmation: Quereme Pass is on par with the best sprinters on the circuit. And if he maintains this level, that major win that escaped by a breath surely won't take long to arrive.
