Tap It to Win scores front-running victory in Seagram Cup (G3)

Live Oak Plantation’s homebred Tap It to Win earned his first graded stakes win on Saturday in the $150,000 Seagram Cup, rolling to a two-length victory after leading at every point of call.

The 4-year-old son of Tapit was chased the entire 1 1/16-mile trip by Mighty Heart, the 2020 Canadian Horse of the Year and winner of two legs of the Canadian Triple Crown.

Ridden to perfection by Rafael Hernandez, Tap It to Win got a half-mile in a comfortable :49.05 while enjoying a three-length lead. Mighty Heart tried to close the gap on the final bend, but could get no closer than the finishing margin as the winner stopped the timer in 1:43.79 on the synthetic surface.

“They told me, ‘Raffi, just got to the lead. Do your thing there. Put him on the lead and the rest is up to the horse.’”, said Hernandez. “When I looked back turning for home, I said, ‘If they have something, they have to run faster than me because I still have plenty.”

Winner of the NYRABETS Sprint S. at Tampa Bay Downs earlier this year Tap It to Win is now 5-2-1 in 14 starts, with earnings of $412,462.

The Mark Casse trainee is out of Onepointthreekarats and is a half-brother to Live Oak’s multiple graded stakes winner Souper Stonehenge.