The nation’s leading Third-Crop sire Constitution got his 12th stakes winner of the year on Friday afternoon at Aqueduct when Never Surprised rolled to a 6 ¼-length victory in the $150,000 Gio Ponti S.
The outcome was never really in doubt for the 3-year-old colt, who cut out solid fractions of :47.37 for the half-mile and 1:10.95 for six furlongs. Up two lengths at that point, he rocketed away from the field at the top of the stretch to come home powerfully. The final time of 1:40.75 for the 1 1/16-miles on the “good” turf was a new track record at the distance.
Never Surprised, owned by Mike Repole, is now 3-3-0 in six outings, with earnings of $321,500. The bay colt has placed second in three graded stakes and won the Central Park S. over this same course a year ago.
Never Surprised, who Repole purchased for $200,000 out of the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling sale, was bred in Kentucky by Golden Pedigree LLC. He is the first foal out of Tiz Dixie and is from the immediate family of four-time graded stakes winner Limehouse.
