Sprint: Jairo Flores Enjoys a Dream Afternoon as Le Cornette Dethrones Labrado

The Jockey Scored a Double at Estrellas, Using Emmanuel’s Son to Deny the Champion a Third Consecutive Win in the Sprint

Le Cornette Enjoys His Moment of Glory in the Sprint / JUAN I. BOZZELLO

Until this past Saturday, jockey Emanuel Jairo Flores had never captured a G1 win in his eight-year career on Argentina’s premier tracks. But the stars aligned at the Estrellas Festival, where the rider not only broke through at the top level but did so twice in one unforgettable day.

Just a short time after steering Coni Fizz (Marconi) to a defining victory in the G1 Gran Premio Estrellas Distaff, Flores returned to the winner’s circle aboard Le Cornette, the dominant force in the G1 Gran Premio Estrellas Sprint (1000m, dirt, ARS 31,000,000 to the winner).

A delicate horse who has historically thrived in mid-level company, Le Cornette found his ideal form to shine at the highest level, denying the reigning champion Labrado (Le Blues) a third consecutive Estrellas Sprint title. Le Cornette won convincingly by four lengths in a time of 56.59 seconds.

The favorite Labrado was practically taken out of the race at the break, finishing last after being trapped between Viejos Tiempos Mask (Mask) and Lagoa Azul (Lenovo)—a result of a slightly skewed start by the former and Labrado’s own tendency for slow breaks.

Meanwhile, Le Cornette was advancing strongly through the center of the track as Labrado had to rally from the back of the pack. While Labrado closed ground and came close, he never quite caught the winner, who maintained his strong pace all the way to the wire.

Finishing a close third and fourth, separated by just three-quarters of a length, were the colt Hiran (Santillano) and filly Santa Clara (Qué Vida Buena), respectively, with Lagoa Azul coming fifth, just half a length behind.

Trained by Gerardo Alteño in Entre Ríos and racing for Stud Chajarí, Le Cornette is a son of Emmanuel out of La Plus Chic (The Leopard). His résumé already includes wins in the Congreve (L) at two, the Eduardo Jara, the Especial Iniciación, and handicaps Ringaro and Laramie Trail. This marked his first G1 start.