By Jill Williams
Connections of Stark Contrast (c, 3, Caravaggio–Catch the Eye, by Quality Road), second in the GIII Jeff Ruby Steaks Mar. 21 behind scratched GI Kentucky Derby contender Fulleffort (Liam's Map), could have entertained a Derby bid with the 50 points he earned at Turfway, but opted instead for the 35th running of the GI American Turf Stakes Saturday on the Derby undercard at Churchill Downs. And boy, did it pay off for the Michael McCarthy-trained Amerman homebred, who took home his first Grade I score.
Sent as the 6-5 favorite, last year's GIII Zuma Beach Stakes winner and GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf runner-up broke smoothly before settling midpack after hitting traffic. Meanwhile, GSP Honey Dutch (Knicks Go) and MSW Street Beast (Street Sense) slugged it out up front through :23.20 and :47.13 fractions while the second choice, previously unbeaten GSW and 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' Remember Mamba (Kitten's Joy), took up a one-from-the-rear spot well off the leaders. As Honey Dutch dispensed of Street Beast and pulled away by about four lengths coming off the turn, Stark Contrast swung wide, shook free of the rest, and set his sights on the leader. Barreling down the stretch on his wrong lead, the bay went right by Honey Dutch, swapped to his correct lead, and had plenty left to hold off a flying-too-late Remember Mamba by 2 1/4 lengths while just a few ticks off the course record, getting the 1 1/16 miles on the lawn in 1:40.31. Honey Dutch, at 13-1, held for third.
“My only instructions were to get him in a good spot. I did that,” said Flavien Prat, who was aboard Stark Contrast for the first time. “He's a good horse; he's a very good horse.”
“I can't tell you how highly I thought about this horse,” added trainer Michael McCarthy. “He got a little sick on us over the winter. We were able to reroute and go to the Jeff Ruby Steaks. Flavien [Prat] speaks for himself and he gave him a great trip. Mr. and Mrs. Amerman are not here today, but I really wish they were.”
Stark Contrast debuted last summer at Del Mar sprinting on the dirt in the 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' performance of Buetane (Tiz the Law), then switched to the lawn for his next effort. Immediately rewarded with a maiden special weight win at a mile, he finished up his 2-year-old campaign with the Zuma Beach score and the Breeders' Cup second to Saturday's G1 2000 Guineas runner-up Gstaad (GB) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}). That three-quarter length loss has been his only miss on the turf, as Stark Contrast kicked off his sophomore campaign with an Eddie Logan Stakes win in January before his second in the Jeff Ruby over Turfway's all-weather surface.
Pedigree Notes:
Stark Contrast is one of 13 graded winners for Caravaggio, the leading European first-crop sire of 2021, who was relocated to Japan's Shizunai Stallion Station for the 2023 season. The son of Scat Daddy has also sired 28 black-type winners, including multiple Group 1 winners Porta Fortuna (Ire) and Tenebrism, and additional multiple American Grade I winner Whitebeam (GB). Stark Contrast is his second black-type winner out of a Quality Road mare, joining SW & MGSP Scipio. Lane's End's Quality Road, 20 this year, has 25 stakes winners out of his daughters.
The Amermans bought Stark Contrast's granddam, Turns My Head (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}), for $310,000 at the 2008 Keeneland September sale. Her dam, an unraced $3.8-million Demi O'Byrne purchase at Keeneland September in 2005, produced 2014 American Turf winner Global View (Galileo {Ire}) and is also the granddam of 2024 GI Churchill Downs Stakes winner Gun Pilot (Gun Runner). Turns My Head was a winner for the Amerman program and produced Stark Contrast's dam–2020 GII John C. Mabee Stakes third Catch the Eye–before she was sold for $75,000 to Checkmate Thoroughbreds/Sir Prancealot in the 2021 Keeneland November sale. Stark Contrast is Catch the Eye's first foal for the Amermans; the mare has been mated to Mill Ridge's Oscar Performance–another Amerman homebred–every year since, resulting in a 2-year-old filly by Ogle, as well as a current yearling filly.
STARK CONTRAST at 6/5 kicks clear to get the G1 win in the American Turf for trainer Michael McCarthy.
Jockey Flavien Prat scores a hat trick on Kentucky Derby day!#TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/EWUDhLezJU
— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) May 2, 2026
Saturday, Churchill Downs
AMERICAN TURF S.-GI, $999,750, Churchill Downs, 5-2, 3yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:40.31, fm.
1–STARK CONTRAST, 122, c, 3, by Caravaggio
1st Dam: Catch the Eye (GSP, $126,902),
by Quality Road
2nd Dam: Turns My Head (Ire), by Montjeu (Ire)
3rd Dam: Egyptian Queen, by Storm Cat
1ST GRADE I WIN. O-Amerman Racing, LLC; B-Jerry Amerman
(KY); T-Michael W. McCarthy; J-Flavien Prat. $573,360.
Lifetime Record: 7-4-2-0, $1,066,060. Werk Nick Rating: A++.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Remember Mamba, 122, c, 3, Kitten's Joy–Gizmo, by Uncle
Mo. 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. 'TDN Rising Star, presented by
Hagyard'. ($270,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP). O-C R K Stable LLC;
B-Burning Daylight Farms, Inc & November Hill, Inc. (KY);
T-Cherie DeVaux. $185,600.
3–Honey Dutch, 122, c, 3, Knicks Go–Ms V Time, by Tiznow.
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($33,000 Wlg '23 KEENOV). O-Legion
Racing and Awestrike Racing; B-Matt Montgomery (KY);
T-D. Whitworth Beckman. $92,800.
Margins: 2 1/4, 1HF, 2 1/4. Odds: 1.20, 3.71, 13.35.
Also Ran: Alpyland, Blinging It Back, Let's Be Frank, Black Hornet, Vasy (Ire), Steel Imperium, Greenwich Village, Street Beast, Thousandsticks, Final Score. Scratched: Blackout Time. Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
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