Pyro Catches Fire, Rallies to Win Risen Star

Winchell Thoroughbreds’ Pyro, who was 11th and last at the top of the stretch, made an explosive move in the final eighth of a mile to capture the $300,000 Grade III Risen Star Stakes, the main event of Louisiana Derby Preview Day Saturday at Fair Grounds.

Under regular rider Shaun Bridgmohan, the son of Pulpit stamped himself as the undisputed long-range choice in Fair Grounds’ Grade II Louisiana Derby next month and one of the early favorites for the Kentucky Derby on May 3.

“I just did what I was told to do, and it worked out very well for me,” said Bridgmohan.

Pyro finished two lengths ahead of stablemate Z Fortune and covered the 1 1/16 miles in 1:44.68. More impressively, press box observers clocked Pyro’s final quarter-mile in a sizzling 22 3-5 seconds. It was another three-quarters of a length back to the Michael Matz-trained Visionaire in third.

As the odds-on choice of the fans, Pyro paid $3.80, $2.60 and $2.20, while Z Fortune returned $3.40 and $2.60 and Visionaire paid $3.60 to show.

“He’s a tremendous horse,” said trainer Steve Asmussen of Pyro, who breezed in company with Horse of the Year Curlin at Fair Grounds twice in the last three weeks before making the first start of his 3-year-old campaign in the Risen Star. “How good is he? He’s good enough to do what we just watched. He accelerated home. Guess his workmate did the job, huh?”

Despite winning for only the second time in five lifetime starts, Pyro increased his career earnings to $696,718.

With Pyro near the back of the pack, Rich Young Ruler set pedestrian early fractions of :24.52 and :49.50 before fading to sixth at the wire. That made Pyro’s late surge – he was still eighth in mid-stretch – even more impressive.