Willcox Inn by a Nose in Washington Park

Either way the photo came out, the finish in the Washington Park Handicap at Arlington Park was going to be a tough miss for someone. When the official numbers went up, Willcox Inn had taken first over Gallant Eagle by a nose, thus avoiding his third just-miss runner-up finish of the year.  For Gallant Eagle, whose last race was for an optional $5,000 claiming tag – where he finished second – it was a so-close-but-so far chance at an upset in his first graded-stakes try.

A fight from the top of the stretch to the wire

Allowed the lead at slow fractions right from the gate, Gallant Eagle was finally hooked by Willcox Inn at the top of the stretch, and on past form it should have been all over. After all, the Grade III Washington Park was Willcox Inn’s 16th graded-stakes event in 20 lifetime starts, and despite no wins in the past year, he had hit the board in half of those, including a recent second in the Grade II Dixie Stakes. But at 10-1 Gallant Eagle refused to give up and forced his 2-1 rival to fight it out right to the wire.

Favorite doesn't take to the polytrack

Just a neck back in third was 12-1 Hattaash, while race favorite Agent Di Nozzo, making his first start on a synthetic track, never seemed to find his footing, racing mostly at the back of the pack and finishing fifth in the six-horse field. For Willcox Inn, who has twice appeared in Breeders’ Cup events  - finishing third in the 2010 Juvenile Turf, and ninth in the 2012 BC Mile – it was a satisfying step in the right direction in a career that has only seen six lifetime wins, but has put just shy of $1 million in the bank.