HONOR Code, in his first start of 2015, mowed down the front-runners with a strong rally to capture the $300,000 Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Handicap last Saturday.

With Javier Castellano riding for trainer Shug McGaughey, Honor Code was well back early through legitimate fractions in the mile before launching his bid entering the stretch. He blew past Private Zone and Valid, the second and third-place finishers, respectively, who duelled for command throughout.

Honor Code, a four-year-old ridgling by A.P. Indy, won the 2013 Grade 2 Remsen Stakes for two-year-olds, was considered a contender for the 2014 Triple Crown. But after a distant second-place finish to Social Inclusion in his three-year-old debut at Gulfstream, he was found to have a slight tear in his right-hind upper suspensory.

“I was ready to go home,” McGaughey said. “I was watching it on TV, and down the backside there wasn’t a ‘1’ on there for a long time. Then I saw him swing to the outside. It was the same thing when he broke his maiden at Saratoga. At the eighth pole I thought maybe he was going to hang a little bit. But then he switched to his right lead and he came on. To see him run a race like that; this was only his second race in a year, we’ve all got to remember that, it’s a tribute to the horse.”

Swale Stakes

Longshot Ready For Rye, put an end to trainer Tom Albertrani’s 0-for-60 current meeting losing streak and became the trainer’s third winner on the day when upsetting favourite Daredevil by two and three-quarter lengths in the Grade 2 Fasig Tipton Swale Stakes at Gulfstream.

Daredevil broke slowly from the inside post in the Swale and made a good closing effort in his first start of 2015, but could not get to the winner, who set the pace, after the opening quarter mile, before carrying on to the line despite not switching leads.

“He broke well,” Albertrani said. “The plan was to see how he broke and don’t fight him, see what the inside horse (Daredevil) was going to do. Luis did a great job and let X Y Jet go out in front of him. We just sat off him.”

Daredevil, making his first start of the season after resting from an 11th-place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, following a victory in the Grade 1 Champagne Stakes, will stretch out in future races.

Todd Pletcher said. “It’s difficult to analyse the track today because there have been mostly turf races. I’d say it was speed-favouring and we got out-sprinted a little bit. I think this sets us up for stretching out next time.”