LAUREL, MD. 02-16-13---What a difference a year makes! Last year Linda Gaudet & Morris Bailey’s Concealed Identity finished fourth in the John B. Campbell Handicap at Laurel Park. Today, he won it.

The race was not without controversy, however, as three horses ended up in a furious drive to the finish line, with Concealed Identity on the outside, Service for Ten, the even money favorite, on the inside and Norman Asbjornson trying his best to find a way between them.  Service for Ten bore into Norman Asbjornson, forcing him into Concealed Identity. Norman Asbjorson fell back to third as Concealed Identity crossed the finish line first.

After an inquiry and a claim of foul, Concealed Identity was declared the winner, Norman Asbjornson was placed second and Service for Ten was disqualified to third.

“He broke good,” said Junior Alvarado, the rider of Norman Asbjornson. “ I had a pretty good trip behind the four horse (Service for Ten) the whole way. I shifted to the outside from the rail close to home and started coming with the outside horse. The inside horse then came out and bumped me. The outside horse came in and bumped me and I lost everything right there. I’m not saying I would have won but it sure cost me the race.”

“He ran a tough race,” said Julian Pimentel, who was aboard Service for Ten. “I think the distance was a bit of an issue but they were gunning for me. We were going comfortable on the backside but then the six (longshot Peasant) moved and then the three (Adirondack King) moved. It seemed like that took a lot out of him and he got tired.”

The winner tracked Service for Ten throughout before ranging up to engage and pass the front runner. He won by three-quarters of a length and his winning time 1:52.29 for the 1-1/8^th mile distance. Concealed Identity, who won two stakes races as a 3-year-old in 2011 and competed in the Preakness Stakes (G1), paid $17.

Concealed Identity was ridden by Trevor McCarthy for his first stakes victory and his eighth win of the week and third on the Saturday card. The 18-year-old son of former rider Mike McCarthy ranks second in the riding standings during the Laurel winter meeting. 

“I can’t believe it,” McCarthy said. “This is such a great experience. Concealed Identity is a quality horse and I am grateful to get a mount like this so early in my career. This week has been incredible. I was concerned about coming down but I stuck to my lane to try to ride a clean race to get the win. He broke really nice. I saved as much ground as I could, brought him out down the backside, kept the dirt out of his face. Coming into the turn we were just kind of running with them, good momentum, and really dug in that last eighth of a mile.”

Owner Gaudet, who is also Concealed Identity’s trainer, was notching her first stakes triumph.

“I’m so excited,” Gaudet said. “I knew this horse would run well today. He’d been training better than ever since his last race. A mile is just a little too short for this horse but he impressed us enough that we thought we were going to go with this no matter what. Trevor had gotten along with him very well in his last race so we went with him again. It couldn’t have turned out better. I was worried with the bumping in the stretch but Trevor assured me we were okay when he came back to the winners’ circle. This horse is truly a two turn horse and does his best at a mile and an eighth here or at Pimlico. He likes both those courses. This is Trevor’s first stakes win, too. That’s kind of a Gaudet tradition. We (Linda and her husband retired trainer Eddie Gaudet) gave Rosie Napravnik a leg up on her first stakes winner as well as Ryan Fogelsonger and Michael Luzzi. Today me and Trevor got the double.”

Concealed Identity improves to 7-of-25 lifetime with earnings of $332,990.

About Laurel Park

Laurel Park is a Stronach Group company, North America’s leading Thoroughbred racetrack owner/operator. The Stronach Group racetracks include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park & Casino, Golden Gate Fields, Portland Meadows, Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, home of the world-famous Preakness. The company owns and operates the Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida and is one of North America's top race horse breeders through its award-winning Adena Springs operation. The Stronach Group is one of the world's largest suppliers of pari-mutuel wagering systems, technologies and services. Its companies include AmTote, a global leader in wagering technology; Xpressbet, an Internet and telephone account wagering service; and Monarch Content Management, which acts as a simulcast purchase and sales agent of horseracing content for numerous North American racetracks and wagering outlets. The Stronach Group is also a major producer of televised horse racing programming through its HRTV cable and satellite network and is North America's premier supplier of virtual online horse racing games, as well as a leading producer of social media content for the horseracing industry.